Thromboxane as a measure of cutaneous vascular damage following irradiation

The present study was designed to evaluate the role of thromboxane in radiation-induced cutaneous injury and to use the quantitation of cutaneous thromboxane B2 as an indicator of vascular alteration and tissue viability in canine skin. Ten adult intact male dogs underwent epithermal neutron irradiation with or without boron neutron capture. Skin biopsies were obtained from (1) within, (2) the edge of, and (3) outside the radiation field at 5, 8, 11, 14, 21, and 90 days after irradiation. Clinical changes at each sampling time were assigned a numerical score. One-half of each biopsy was assigned a numerical score based on histologic changes. Thromboxane B2 was measured from the second half by enzyme immunoabsorbent assay. Thromboxane B2 concentration paralleled the response of clinical and histologic score over time, indicating the value of thromboxane measurement for evaluation of skin changes secondary to irradiation.