F-034THE COMPARISON OF TRACHEOTOMY AND TRANSLARYNGEAL INTUBATION REGARDING FREE RADICAL FORMATION AND EFFECT ON THE LUNG IN RATS

Objectives Our aim in this study was to compare the blood gas changes, the malondialdehyde (MDA) and endogenous antioxidant glutathione (GSH) levels in blood and lung tissues after ischaemia/reperfusion, and the histopathological damage in lung tissue in rats provided respiratory support with mechanical ventilation after translaryngeal intubation and tracheotomy. Methods A total of 45 rats divided into three equal groups were included in this study. Group 1 rats were provided mechanical ventilator support after translaryngeal intubation, group 2 rats were provided mechanical ventilator support after tracheotomy, and group 3 was the control group where rats were only anaesthetized. Intergroup comparisons of blood gas changes, MDA and GSH levels, and histopathological changes in the lung tissue were made in the blood and tissue samples obtained. Results Blood gas evaluation showed more marked increase in pO2 values and decline in pCO2 values in group 2 than group 1 (P 0.05). In terms of histopathological scoring, the damage score in group 1 was higher than in group 2 (P < 0.05). Conclusions This is the first experimental study to show tracheotomy to be more advantageous than translaryngeal intubation in terms of the effect on blood gases, effect of ischaemia/reperfusion damage on free oxygen radicals, and structural changes in the lung tissue. Transferring to tracheotomy as soon as possible in patients on long-term intubation will cause less tissue damage and provide maximum oxygen. Disclosure All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.