Effects of remifentanil pretreatment on hemorrhagic shock-induced acute liver injury in rabbits

Objective To investigate the effects of pretreatment with remifentanil on hemorrhagic shock (HS)-induced acute liver injury in rabbits.Methods Thirty-two New Zealand white rabbits,weighing 2.0-2.5 kg,were randomly divided into 4 groups (n=8 each): sham operation group (group S) ; group HS,low-dose remifentanil group (group RL) ; high-dose remifentanil group (group RH).Remifentanil was infused at 0.66 and 1.32 μg· kg-1 · min-1 for 145 min in groups RL and RH respectively,while the equal volume of normal saline was infused in group C.HS was induced by withdrawing blood from the left femoral artery at 15 min after continuous infusion of normal saline or remifentanil and mean arterial pressure (MAP) was reduced to 40 mm Hg.MAP was reduced to 35-45 mm Hg and maintained at this level for 120 min in groups HS,RL and RH.Blood samples were taken for determination of serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) activities before administration (T0),immediately before blood letting (T1),and at 10,30,60 and 90 min after blood letting (T3-6).The animals were then sacrificed and the livers were immediately removed for microscopic examination.Results Compared with group S,the serum ALT activity at T5 and T6 and serum AST activity at T4-T6 were significantly increased in the other three groups (P ＜ 0.05).Compared with group HS,the serum ALT activity at T5 and T6,and serum AST activity at T4-T6 were significantly decreased in group RH,and no significant change was found in group RL (P ＞ 0.05).Compared with group RL,the serum ALT activity at T5 and T6,and serum AST activity at T4-T6 were significantly decreased in group RH (P ＜ 0.05).The serum ALT activity at T5 and T6 and serum AST activity at T4-T6 were significantly increased in groups HS,R and RH than those at T0 (P ＜ 0.05 or 0.01).The patho1ogical injury was attenuated in group RH compared with groups HS and RL.Conclusion Remifentanil pretreatment can attenuate HS-induced acute liver injury in rabbits,and the effect is related to the dose. Key words: Piperidines; Shock,hemorrhagic; liver