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The effect of combined neurolytic blocking agent 5% phenol-glycerol in rat sciatic nerve

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Abstract

Combined 5% phenol-glycerol has been used to treat cancer pain or spasticity and as sympathetic blocks. The major clinical problems have been the unpredictable effects on pain and on the duration of the blocks. Previously we have shown that intraneurally injected phenol induces haemorrhagic necrosis as well as dissolving of the nerve fibres. Glycerol, on the other hand, induces dispersion of nerve fibre debris into the endoneurium. We have now studied the effects of a combination of these two chemically different agents. The endoneurial and epineurial responses of rat peripheral nerve were followed after intraneural and perineural injections. Samples for electron microscopic and immunohistochemical studies were taken at 1–26 weeks after the injection. The intraneural phenol-glycerol injection resulted in gross endoneurial damage with partly or totally dissolved nerve fibres. Totally dissolved nerve fibres showed empty, collapsed basal lamina tubes and partly dissolved nerve fibres showed breaching of remaining degenerative debris into the endoneurial space. Axonal regeneration was delayed and was observed first after 2 weeks and it took 4 months before most of the nerve fibres were myelinated. The perineural injections resulted in partial subperineurial damage of the endoneurium morphologically similar to the results caused by the intraneural injection. An initial high accumulation of epineurial macrophages was noted at 1 and 2 weeks. An invasion of macrophages into the endoneurium occurred within 1 week after the intraneural and perineural injections and the number of endoneurial macrophages remained high for up to 6 months. The present study shows that glycerol added to phenol diminishes the necrotizing effect of phenol after an intraneural injection. Combined phenol-glycerol-induced nerve injury is reversible and the axons regenerate but residual morphological changes can be observed even after 6 months.

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Acknowledgements

We are deeply grateful to the Institute of Neurosciences, Southern General Hospital in Glasgow for letting us use their electron microscope facilities. We would also like to thank Mr. Jaakko Liippo for skilled photography as well as Ms. Paula Lehtinen and Pirkko Huuskonen, M.A., for correcting the language. This work was supported by an EVO Grant to Turku University Hospital and Turku University Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Anaesthesiology, Loimaa District Hospital, 32200, Loimaa, Finland

    Taina Westerlund

  2. Department of Neurosurgery, Turku University Central Hospital, Kiinamyllynkatu 4–8, 20520, Turku, Finland

    Ville Vuorinen

  3. Department of Pathology, Turku University Central Hospital, Kiinamyllynkatu 4–8, 20520, Turku, Finland

    Taina Westerlund & Matias Röyttä

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  1. Taina Westerlund
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  2. Ville Vuorinen
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  3. Matias Röyttä
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Correspondence to Matias Röyttä.

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Westerlund, T., Vuorinen, V. & Röyttä, M. The effect of combined neurolytic blocking agent 5% phenol-glycerol in rat sciatic nerve. Acta Neuropathol 106, 261–270 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-003-0730-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-003-0730-1

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