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STUDIES ON PULMONARY EDEMA : II. THE PATHOGENESIS OF NEUROPATHIC PULMONARY EDEMA
1Department of Pathology of The Harvard Medical School, and of The Children's and Infants' Hospital, Boston, and the J. F. Heymans Institute, University of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium.
The Journal of Experimental Medicine
|October 30, 2009
Summary
Bilateral vagotomy in guinea pigs causes fatal pulmonary edema due to disrupted pulmonary vasomotor nerves. This suggests human neuropathic pulmonary edema may stem from impaired vasomotor control.
Area of Science:
- Physiology
- Pathology
- Neurology
Background:
- Bilateral cervical vagotomy in guinea pigs leads to rapid mortality.
- The primary cause of death is severe pulmonary edema and congestion.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the cause of death following bilateral cervical vagotomy in guinea pigs.
- To elucidate the role of pulmonary vasomotor nerves in neuropathic pulmonary edema.
Main Methods:
- Bilateral cervical vagotomy was performed on guinea pigs.
- Artificial respiration was maintained via tracheal cannula.
- Pulmonary changes were observed directly.
Main Results:
- Guinea pigs died rapidly post-vagotomy, irrespective of artificial respiration.
- Pulmonary edema and congestion developed progressively after vagotomy.
- The observed pulmonary edema is characterized as neuropathic, linked to vagotomy-induced nerve disturbance.
Conclusions:
- Disturbance or abolition of pulmonary vasomotor nerves causes neuropathic pulmonary edema in guinea pigs.
- Animal studies suggest human neuropathic pulmonary edema results from central or peripheral disturbances in pulmonary vascular vasomotor control.
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