A dose-response study of dexamethasone in a model of spinal cord compression caused by epidural tumor Journal Article
| Authors: | Delattre, J. Y.; Arbit, E.; Thaler, H. T.; Rosenblum, M. K.; Posner, J. B. |
| Article Title: | A dose-response study of dexamethasone in a model of spinal cord compression caused by epidural tumor |
| Abstract: | In order to assess the clinical and biological effects of glucocorticoids in the therapy of epidural spinal cord compression, the T8-10 epidural space of 50 rats was implanted with Walker 256 tumor. The rats were studied 10 to 20 days later when they became paraparetic. The regional blood-spinal cord transport constant (K, a function of the blood-spinal cord barrier) of 14Carbon-labeled aminoisobutyric acid was measured with quantitative autoradiography 6 hours after intravenous injection of low-dose (0.1 mg/kg), intermediate dose (1 mg/kg), and high-dose (10 mg/kg) dexamethasone. The effects of dexamethasone in these doses on the clinical signs and water content of the compressed cord were also evaluated 40 hours after treatment began. The K factor increased 730% in compressed compared with noncompressed spinal cord (p <0.001). Dexamethasone induced a dose-related reduction of both K (p = 0.007) and water content of the compressed cord (p <0.0001). Stabilization or, more rarely, improvement of weakness at 24 and 40 hours posttreatment correlated with the dose of dexamethasone (r = 0.88, p <0.001). This study demonstrates that dexamethasone has a dose-related beneficial clinical effect associated with an improvement of blood-spinal cord barrier breakdown and a reduction of the water content of the compressed cord. This study supports the use of high-dose dexamethasone for the initial treatment of epidural spinal cord compression. |
| Keywords: | nonhuman; animal model; dexamethasone; spinal cord; spinal cord compression; rat; radioisotope; intravenous drug administration; 2 amino 2 methylpropionic acid; priority journal; blood barrier; epidermis tumor |
| Journal Title: | Journal of Neurosurgery |
| Volume: | 70 |
| Issue: | 6 |
| ISSN: | 0022-3085 |
| Publisher: | American Association of Neurological Surgeons |
| Date Published: | 1989-06-01 |
| Start Page: | 920 |
| End Page: | 925 |
| Language: | English |
| DOI: | 10.3171/jns.1989.70.6.0920 |
| PUBMED: | 2715820 |
| PROVIDER: | scopus |
| DOI/URL: | |
| Notes: | Article -- Export Date: 14 April 2020 -- Source: Scopus |
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