Results with anti-adhesion gel used for simulated contusion spinal cord injury in rats

Objective was to investigate an effect of anti-adhesion hyaluronic-containing resorbable gel on the course of traumatic spinal cord disease caused by a simulated contusion spinal cord injury (SCI) in rats. Material and methods A moderate spinal cord injury was simulated at the Th9 level of 40 female Wistar rats that were randomly divided into 2 groups. Group I received hyaluronic-containing absorbable antiadhesion gel Antiadgezin® that was intraoperatively applied to the dura mater of experimental rats; Group II of control rats received no gel. The BBB locomotor rating scale was used to evaluate the extent of recovered pelvic limb function. The animals were sacrificed on days 5, 15, 30, 60 and 90. Paraffin and epoxy semi-thin 1 μm sections were used for morphological examination of the spinal cord using light microscopy. Results The gel used for contusion SCI in rats caused neither significant changes during postoperative period nor local infectious and inflammatory complications, and showed no negative impact on functional results. Morphological examination revealed pathomorphological changes that were identical for both groups and characteristic of contusion SCI showing softening, necrosis of the nervous tissue, tissue and cell detritus of gray and white matter, small cysts in the early stages of the experiment; progression of syringomyelia and formation of large cysts primarily seen in the gray matter and the onset of regenerative processes in the white matter at 60 and 90 days of the experiment. Conclusion The absence of a negative effect of the anti-adhesion hyaluronic-containing resorbable gel on the functional results, and morphological characteristics of the spinal cord offer the opportunity of the further experimental use as a carrier of substance composition initiating beneficial metabolic and neuroprotective action for transdural delivery in simulated SCI.