Prospective study on intracranial pressure waveform morphology and its relationship with the development of obesity in rats

Abstract

Obesity accumulates fat in the body may cause hypertension and change intracranial pressure waveform morphology (ICP). However, not clear how and when it occurs. Thus, our objective was to evaluate the ICP waveform morphology and P2/P1 ratio during the development of obesity. Sixteen 45-day-old male Wistar rats, after 60 days of adaptation were divided into non-obese (NOB, n = 7) and obese (OB, n = 9). The OB group received a high-fat diet and the NOB group received a standard diet for 24 weeks. ICP, body composition, blood pressure (BP), and heart rate(HR) were assessed every 4 weeks. Two-Way ANOVA was used for the area under the curve with Bonferroni's test, or Student's t-test for BP, and HR. Body mass(BM) and body fat(BF) and fat-free mass(FFM) were higher in OB rats. There was no difference in BP, but there was a difference in HR, greater in OB. The ICP decreased by NOB. These results suggest that the increase in BM and BF caused obesity, and BM can explain the increase in FFM. Although we did not find pathological states of ICP, NOB demonstrated better brain compliance, and the upward trend in the P2 waveform in OB may indicate impairment to the ICP of OB rats.