Analysis of spinal cord blood supply combining vascular corrosion casting and fluorescence microsphere technique: A feasibility study in an aortic surgical large animal model

Abstract

Introduction Spinal cord ischemia after cardiovascular interventions continues to be a devastating problem in modern surgery. The role of intraspinal vascular networks and anterior radiculomedullary arteries (ARMA) in preventing spinal cord ischemia is poorly understood. Materials and methods Landrace pigs (n = 30, 35.1 ± 3.9 kg) underwent a lateral thoracotomy. Fluorescent microspheres were injected into the left atrium and a reference sample was aspirated from the descending aorta. Repeated measurements of spinal cord and renal cortical blood flow from the left and right kidneys with three different microsphere colors in five pigs were taken to validate reproducibility. Spinal cord blood flow to the upper thoracic (T1–T4), mid‐thoracic (T5–T8), lower thoracic (T9–T13), and lumbar (L1–L3) levels were determined. After euthanasia, we carried out selective vascular corrosion cast and counted the left and right ARMAs from levels T1–T13. Results Blood flow analysis of the left and right kidneys revealed a strong correlation (r = .94, p < .001). We detected more left than right ARMAs, with the highest prevalence at T4 (p < .05). The mean number of ARMAs was 8 ± 2. Their number in the upper thoracic region ranged from 2 to 7 (mean of 5 ± 1), while in the lower thoracic region they ranged from 0 to 5 (mean of 3 ± 1 [p < .001]). Conclusions This study shows that combining fluorescence microsphere technique and vascular corrosion cast is well suited for assessing the blood flow and visualizing the arteries at the same time.

A Preliminary Comparative Study of Prenatal Screening and Postpartum Anatomy Using a Novel Improved Cardiovascular Model Based on Literature Data

“…We followed the methods of Saravi B et al (7,9,15). GE Voluson E8 and Mindray Resona7 colour Doppler ultrasound machines were used with convex array transducers and a frequency of 3.0 -5.5 MHz.…”