Protective effect of propofol preconditioning and postconditioning against ischemic spinal cord injury

Propofol preconditioning has been shown to provide neuroprotection against spinal ischemia/reperfusion injury. In this study, spinal cord ischemia/repeffusion injury was induced by blocking the abdominal aorta in rabbits for 40 minutes. Results showed that the co-application of propofol preconditioning and postconditioning regimen ameliorated pathological injury of the ischemic spinal cord and suppressed the elevation of malondialdehyde levels and increased superoxide dismutase activities in the spinal cord tissues. Co-application of propofol preconditioning and postconditioning resulted in potent protective effects against spinal cord ischemia/reperfusion injury and prolonged the spinal cord＇s tolerance to ischemia. This protection was associated with the anti-lipid peroxidation capacity of the spinal cord tissues.