THE INHIBITION OF CANINE VEIN GRAFT INTIMAL THICKENING USING A NEWLY DEVELOPED ANTIPLATELET AGENT

Objective, The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a newly developed antiplatelet agent, 4-cyano-5,5-bis[methoxyphenyl]-4- pentenoic acid (E5510) on intimal hyperplasia of experimental autologo us vein grafts in a distal poor runoff canine model. Method. The femor al vein was implanted into the femoral artery preparing a distal poor runoff model. These animals were divided into three groups consisting of the E5510 group, the Aspirin group, and the Control group. The vein grafts were harvested at either 1 or 4 weeks after implantation. Resu lts. At 4 weeks, the degree of intimal hyperplasia of the graft of E55 10 group was significantly less than that of the Aspirin group and the Control group (p < 0.05) No significant difference was observed betwe en the Aspirin group and the Control group. At 1 week, the degree of i ntimal cell proliferation was determined by bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) i ncorporation and was expressed as the BrdU labeling index. The BrdU la beling index of the E5510 group was also significantly lower than that of the Control group (p < 0.05). Conclusions, These data demonstrate the efficacy of E5510 in reducing intimal hyperplasia of vein grafts u nder distal poor runoff conditions by reducing the degree of smooth mu scle cell proliferation.