[Effects of Xuebijing injection on multiple organ dysfunction and mortality in rats with delayed resuscitation for...

To investigate the effects of Xuebijing injection on multiple organ dysfunction and mortality in rats with delayed resuscitation after scald injury.

Wistar rats were subjected to a 30% total body surface area (TBSA) full-thickness scald injury in the experimental groups. One hundred and thirty male Wistar rats were randomly divided into sham scald group (n=10), thermal injury group (n=60, 40 ml/kg normal saline was infused peritoneally 6 hours postburn), and Xuebijing treatment group (n=60, 4 ml/kg Xuebijing injection was injected twice a day in addition to delayed resuscitation). Animals of the thermal injury group and Xuebijing treatment group were re-divided into three subgroups according to the different time points of treatment: 2 hours before scald (n=20), 2 hours after scald (n=20), and 12 hours after scald (n=20). Multiple organ function parameters and 7-day mortality were determined in all the groups.

The mortality of animals with Xuebijing treatment at 12 hours postburn was significantly lower than that of scald controls (75.0% vs. 40.0%, P<0.05). In comparison with scald group, the animals in Xuebijing treatment group were found to have significantly decreased values of organ functional parameters at 12 hours postburn, including serum levels of alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (Cr) and creatine kinase (CK, P<0.05 or P<0.01).

These findings indicate that Xuebijing injection could obviously lower the mortality of rats with delayed resuscitation after burn injury, and it markedly protects against multiple organ dysfunction secondary to severe burns.