There is still no objective method or reliable device to measure and assess the physical properties of keloid and hypertrophic scars. Using the Vesmeter, we measured the physical properties of keloid and hypertrophic scars, and investigated how their physical properties changed during the process of clinical follow-up. We followed up 11 patients with keloid (n = 6) and hypertrophic (n = 5) scars for 4 months, and measured their physical properties three times over a 2-month period using the Vesmeter. Measurements included hardness, elasticity, penetration depth, relaxation time, viscosity and viscoelastic ratio. All physical properties were measured simultaneously while an indenter was pressed onto the lesion and digitalise the measured data by analysing the wave forms of the lesion's surface behaviour. Data collection was repeated three times for each measurement point, and the average of these three values was used. Overall hardness and viscosity decreased in nine patients, whereas penetration depth increased in nine. Relaxation time decreased in nine patients and elasticity increased in six. Vesmeter was considered to be an objective, convenient and comparatively reliable measuring device for the quantification of the physical properties of keloid and hypertrophic scars.
Aim:As only a few basic animal experiments have assessed the usefulness of percutaneous application of oxybutynin, we compared the effects of percutaneous application and intraduodenal injection of oxybutynin on urinary bladder contraction accompanied by micturition in conscious rabbits and salivation in anesthetized rabbits. Methods: Bladder contractions were induced by continuous infusion of saline (2 mL/min) into the bladder. Salivary secretion was induced by pilocarpine (0.1 mg/kg, i.v.). Oxybutynin was administered at 15 mg/animal, and the plasma concentrations of oxybutynin and N-desethyloxybutynin were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography to clarify the effective concentration. Results: The intercontraction interval (ICI) was prolonged from 0.5 h after intraduodenal injection of oxybutynin, and this effect continued for 2 h. The ICI prolongation after percutaneous application of oxybutynin appeared at 2 h and continued throughout the 6-h experimental period. The saliva secretion induced by pilocarpine was inhibited to almost the same level by oxybutynin 3 h after intraduodenal injection and 6 h after percutaneous application. However, the sum of the plasma concentrations of oxybutynin and N-desethyloxybutynin rose steeply to a very high level within 20 min after oral administration instead of intraduodenal injection and decreased within 3 h to about half of the level evident 6 h after percutaneous application. Conclusion: We confirmed that percutaneous application of oxybutynin caused long-lasting ICI prolongation in our rabbit model, as compared with that after intraduodenal injection, and produced weaker inhibitory effects on saliva secretion because it did not cause steep elevation of the plasma concentration.
Social isolation is suggested to be a detrimental for the confusional states and abnormal interaction with cognitive impairment after the isoflurane plus surgery. However, the underlying mechanisms of these states remain unclear. After 2 hours exposure of isoflurane with abdominal surgery followed by social isolation for 24 h (ISO+SI-24h), the spontaneous alternations in Y-maze in male mice (7-10 weeks old) was significantly decreased, indicating that the spatial working memory was impaired by ISO+SI-24h. In general, only raring the 7-days of SI without the surgery, mice exhibit normal behaviors. However, the exposure of isoflurane with abdominal surgery in mice followed by raring 7 days of SI enhanced the mounting and sniffing behaviors against intruder mice in the home cage. In addition, the protein level of hippocampal dopamine D 2 receptors, but not prefrontal cortex was significantly decreased in mice with isoflurane plus surgery and SI. Since D 2 receptor is important for the cognitive function and psychosocial, these results imply the possibility that decrease in D 2 receptor contribute to the postoperative abnormal social interaction and cognitive dysfunction.
Inhalation anesthesia with isoflurane is occasionally associated with the postoperative cognitive impairment and shift in the circadian rhythms. The microglial activation is suggested to be pathogenesis of these complications. Glucagonlike peptide 1 (GLP-1) is specifically expressed in microglia and are associated with circadian transcription factor in hippocampus. We previously reported that hippocampal GLP-1 is reduced with cognitive dysfunction. Therefore, we investigated whether the hippocampal GLP-1 is affected by surgery with inhalation anesthesia. The spatial working memory subjected by spontaneous alteration in the Y-maze is significantly decreased 24 hours in mice with 2hexposure of isoflurane plus abdominal surgery. In addition, circadian rhythms are significantly shifted during 7 days social isolation after the 2h-exposure of isoflurane with surgery. Western blotting revealed that the protein level of GLP-1 was decreased to the subdetection level for more than three days after the inhalation anesthesia with isoflurane plus abdominal surgery. These results indicate the possibility that the GLP-1 may contribute to the postoperative cognitive dysfunction and shift the circadian rhythms.
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