The effect of antihistamines on experimental posttraumatic edema of the spinal cord

The present experiments were designed to test the effect of antihistamines on the formation of post-traumatic edema of the spinal cord. Ten rhesus monkeys received 600 gm cm injuries to the T10 level of the spinal cord. Five animals received antihistamine treatment and five animals acted as untreated controls. Posttraumatic edema was estimated using radio-active tagged serum albumin. A significant increase in radioactivity of the injured segment was demonstrated in both groups when compared to noninjured issue, but no difference was demonstrated in the radioactivity of the injured segment in the treated versus the nontreated group.