Prevention of adult respiratory distress syndrome with plasminogen activator in pigs.

Death from traumatic shock has been associated with loss of blood externally or internally. However, many patients die after trauma, even though blood volume restoration is adequate. Death is often due to pulmonary failure (adult respiratory distress syndrome [ARDS]). Death and ARDS have been associated with disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) and microclots in the lungs. Dissolution of the microclots after trauma can be achieved by activation of endogenous plasmin. Nine pigs were anesthetized for 48 h. Trauma was administered by 60 standard blows to each thigh resulting in a bruise of muscle but no skin, bone, or major vessel injury. Nutrition and respiration were maintained at normal levels. All nine pigs died with severe lung pathology and low PaO2. Ten other traumatized pigs were treated with a plasminogen activator iv 4 h after trauma. Five of these were treated with tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) and five with urokinase. All treated pigs survived 48 h and maintained a normal PaO2. Autopsy showed minimal lung pathology.

The kinetics of disappearance of endogenous mouse placental lactogen-II in intact and hypophysectomized pregnant mice.

The kinetics of disappearance of endogenous mouse placental lactogen-II (mPL-II) were determined in day 12 and day 16 pregnant Swiss Webster mice and in day 16 pregnant mice that had been hypophysectomized (hypox) on day 12. Blood samples from anesthetized animals were taken at different time intervals after bilateral hysterectomy and the maternal serum mPL-II concentration was measured by homologous radioimmunoassay (RIA). Disappearance curves of mPL-II for day 12 and day 16 pregnant mice were resolved into two exponential components: a rapid phase of disappearance, followed by a slow phase. Although the serum mPL-II concentration was higher on day 16 of pregnancy than on day 12, the alpha rate constant for the fast component of the disappearance curve for day 12 pregnant mice (0.054 +/- 0.005 ml/s) was similar to the value observed for day 16 animals (0.052 +/- 0.005 ml/s). The half-life of the fast component of the disappearance curve for day 12 and day 16 pregnant mice was 13.3 +/- 0.9 s and 14.8 +/- 1.5 s, respectively. The slow component of the disappearance curves for day 12 and day 16 pregnant mice had a beta rate constant of 0.00088 +/- 0.00017 ml/s and 0.00083 +/- 0.00009 ml/s, respectively. The half-life of the slow phase of the disappearance curves for day 12 pregnant mice was 1216.4 +/- 376.0 s, while the slow phase of day 16 disappearance curves displayed a half-life of 954.4 +/- 102.7 s.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)