Intravenous nitroglycerin for the treatment of chronic cerebral vasoconstriction in the primate

A primate model of chronic cerebral vasoconstriction is presented which closely approximates the human experience following subarachnoid hemorrhage. Treatment of the vasoconstriction with intravenous nitroglycerin produces a modest, but statistically significant, increase in the size of the most constricted vessels (11%, p less than 0.02) when compared with a control infusion of normal saline. The significance of these experiments is discussed.