Effect of Calcium Antagonists on the Liver Remaining after Hepatectomy Following Ischemia

Hitoshi Hara, Hiroshi Isozaki, Kunio Okajima

Department of Surgery, Osaka Medical College

To examine the relation between variations in the calcium level in the cytoplasm of liver remaining after hepatectomy following the application of ischemia and hepatocellular damage, we measured the calcium level in the cytoplasm of the liver with an X-ray microanalyzer. the effect of administration of a calcium antagonist was also examined. Using male Wistar rats we blocked the blood flow to the right lobe and caudate lobe of the liver for 60 min and then resected the left lobe in this experiment. The calcium antagonist was slowly administered in one shot through the portal vein before ischemia. There was no difference in the 7-day survival rate between animals given the antagonist and those not receiving it, but postoperative early deaths were decreased. The calcium level of the cytoplasm of liver, which had risen slightly during ischemia, was increased markedly during re-prefusion, but decreased thereafter. The serum GOT level was increased up to 2 hr after the release of ischemia. In the animals receiving the drug, the rise in the calcium level in the cytoplasm of liver and that in serum GOT were inhibited significantly. It was considered that administration of a calcium antagonist relieved hepatocellular damage by inhibiting the rise in the calcium level in the cytoplasm of the remaining liver and contributed to the decrease in postoperative early deaths.

Key words
effect of calcium antagonist, Ca concentration within the cytoplasm of hepatocyte, X-ray microanalyzer, reperfusion injury

Reprint requests
Hitoshi Hara Department of Surgery, Osaka Medical College
2-7 Daigaku-cho, Takatsuki City, 569 JAPAN

Accepted
March 3, 1993

To read the PDF file you will need Abobe Reader installed on your computer.