The Protective Effects Of Thoracic Epidural Anesthesia On Acute Lung Injury Induced By Oleic Acid In Swine

Objective: Acute lung injury (ALI) is one of acute and diffuse damages, which occurs after the body suffered attacks such as severe infection, trauma and shock. The target tissues of ALI include alveolar epithelium, alveolar capillary endothelium and pulmonary interstitial substance. The pathologic character of ALI is pulmonary edema and unexpanded lung induced by diffusive damages of alveolar capillary membrane. The initial clinical situation is acute and gradually aggravating dyspnea, respiratory distress, intractable hypoxemia and non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema. It developed into acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) ultimately. The pathogenesis of ALI is very complicated and not clear up to now. Recently, inflammatory reaction is emphasized to play a key role and many inflammatory cells and mediators involved in it. Now, many investigators suggest that the alveolus mononuclear (MΦ) and polymorphnuclear leukocyte (PMN) produce the complement C5a, TNF-α, and ILs, which can start the response of inflammation cascade and cause a series of inflammatory reaction and cell injury. This infernal circle will result in lung injury. Epidural anesthesia is convenient, easy, economy and has been widely used in clinic. Recent researches indicate that...