Riluzole and methylprednisolone combined treatment improves functional recovery in traumatic spinal cord injury

The potential use of riluzole (a glutamate release inhibitor) alone or in c ombination with methylprednisolone (MP) in treating acute spinal cored inju ry (SCI) was examined. Rats received a contusion injury to the spinal cord using the NYU impactor and were treated with vehicle, riluzole (8 mg/kg), M P(30 mg/kg), or riluzole + MP at 2 and 4 h following injury. Animals contin ued to receive riluzole treatment (8 mg/kg) for a period of 1 week. The ani mals were then tested weekly for functional recovery using the BBB open fie ld locomotor score. At the end of testing (6 weeks after injury), each spin al cord was examined for the amount of remaining tissue at the injury site and a myelination index was used to quantify remaining axons in the ventrom edial white matter. In this study, only the combination treatment was found to significantly improve behavioral recovery as assessed using the BBB ope n field locomotor scale. In addition, the combination treatment promoted ti ssue sparing at the lesion epicenter, but had no clear effect on the index of myelnation. The results of this study clearly demonstrate the potential beneficial effects of a combination approach in the treatment of traumatic SCI.