THE EFFECT OF POLYETHYLENE GLYCOL-SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE ON GASTRIC-MUCOSA AND SURVIVAL IN SHOCK WITH TISSUE-INJURY

Oxygen-derived free radicals may play an important role in the pathoge nesis of organ injury and death following hemorrhagic shock. This stud y was designed to test the effects of Polyethylene Glycol-Superoxide D ismutase (PEG-SOD) on gastric mucosal injury and survival in an animal model of hemorrhagic shock and tissue trauma. Reproducible tissue tra uma was produced by IM injection of turpentine (1.4 mu l/g). A standar dized hemorrhagic shock model with an LD 90 was employed. This model c onsisted of the following sequence of events: phlebotomy to 60 per cen t blood volume, 45-minute shock period, resuscitation using Lactated R ingers (LR) at two times shed volume over 60 minutes. Twenty rats were randomly assigned to receive LR (control) or PEG-SOD (5.36 mg/kg). Im mediately following death or at 72 hours, the stomach was removed. Com puter image analysis was used to determine the lesion area as a per ce nt of total gastric mucosal surface area. Our results show no statisti cal difference in gastric mucosal lesion area between groups (1.83% vs 1.75%, respectively). Survival at 72 hours was significantly higher f or PEG-SOD animals vs controls (70% vs 10%, P = 0.0001). This data sug gests that IV administration of PBG-SOD during, resuscitation is a pot entially effective. means of improving survival following severe hemor rhagic shock and tissue injury.