An improved canine model of subarachnoid hemorrhage using intrathecal indwelling catheters

In the present study, the feasibility of intrathecal indwelling catheters in the preparation of a repeated subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) model in dogs, as well as chronic intrathecal administration of therapeutic agents against the ensuing cerebral vasospasm was examined. Briefly, through a small suboccipital incision, two catheters were introduced into the subarachnoid space so that their tips were positioned in the prepontine cistern. One was used to induce SAH by infusing autologous blood, and the other to administer pharmacological agents (saline and/or saline containing a dye in this study) by means of an osmotic pump. The occurrence of cerebral vasospasm was followed by angiography via the catheter placed in the vertebral artery. The obtained results show: i) the injected blood effectively formed a subarachnoid clot in the prepontine cistern, invariably leading to the occurrence of severe cerebral vasospasm of the basilar artery; ii) the fluid injected by the osmotic pump was evenly distributed in the cisterns around the brain stem; iii) on post mortem pathological examination, no injury of the brain or the major arteries ascribable to the placement of catheters was found. Therefore, the present model is considered to be useful for both the investigation of pathophysiology and therapy of cerebral vasospasm following SAH, to be more favorable from the standpoint of animal protection, and more convenient and reliable than those used until now.