Biphasic pathophysiological response of vasogenic and cellular edema in traumatic brain swelling

The objective of this study was to quantify the temporal water content changes and document the type of edema (cellular versus vasogenic) that is occurring during both the acute and the late stages of edema development following closed head injury. Adult Sprague rats (n = 50) were separated into two groups: Group I: Sham (n = 8), Group II: Trauma (n = 42). The measurement of brain water content (BWC) was based on T1, whereas the differentiation of edema on the measurement of the random, translational motion of water protons (apparent diffusion coefficients-ADC) by MRI. In trauma animals, we found a significant increase in ADC (105%) as well as in BWC (0.7 +/- 0.3%) during the first 60 minutes post injury indicating vasogenic edema formation. This transient increase; however, was followed by a continuing decrease in ADC beginning at 45 minutes post injury and reaching a minimum at days 7-14 (-103%). Since the BWC continued to increase during the next day (10.3%), it is suggested cellular edema formation started to develop soon after injury and became dominant between 1-2 weeks post injury. In conclusion we may consider, that there is a predominantly vasogenic edema formation immediately after injury and later a more widespread and slower edema formation due to a predominantly cellular swelling.