title: The effect of inflammation on blood vessel area in Rosenthal's canal in the cat cochlea.
abstract: The quantitative analysis of spiral ganglion cells is important. It is conventionally expressed as a cell density, the number of cells within Rosenthal's canal divided by its area. The area of Rosenthal's canal conventionally excludes the areas of blood vessels within it. If blood vessels proliferate in an inflammatory response then excluding their area may result in an under-estimate of cell loss. This study investigates whether blood vessel area increases with inflammation. Eighteen implanted and stimulated cat cochleas were studied. Using computer aided analysis techniques we measured the areas of Rosenthal's canals and its blood vessels. A histologist quantitatively graded the inflammation in each cochlea. Blood vessel area increased with the grade of inflammation. Multiple regression analysis showed this effect was significant (P < 0.01). This increase in blood vessel area may have an effect on density measurements made by excluding that area, leading to an under-estimate of ganglion cell loss.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology, St Michael's Hospital, Bristol, UK.
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Moralee
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000473:pathology*; D002415:Cats; D002452:Cell Count; D016923:Cell Death; D002455:Cell Division; D003051:Cochlea / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000473:pathology; D003054:Cochlear Implants; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013136:Spiral Ganglion / Q000473:pathology*; D013137:Spiral Lamina / Q000098:blood supply / Q000473:pathology; D014657:Vasculitis / Q000473:pathology*