The effects of chronic exercise on anesthesia induced hepatotoxicity.
A hypoxic rat model of halothane-induced hepatotoxicity, which is known to produce liver damage, was used to determine the effects of chronic exercise on halothane-induced hepatotoxicity and on reduced hepatic glutathione (GSH) levels. Metabolism of volatile anesthetics may generate metabolites that can cause mild and transient hepatotoxicity.


METHODS
Six male Sprague-Dawley rats completed a 10-wk (5 d x wk(-1)) treadmill running protocol. Twelve age-matched animals were used as sedentary controls. After the completion of exercise training, rats were exposed for 2 h to 1% halothane in 14% O2. Twenty-four hours later, animals were anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital and sacrificed. Livers were excised, stained, and evaluated for hepatotoxicity using a histopathological 0 (normal) to 5 (severe damage) point categorical scale and for the determination of GSH levels.


RESULTS
Median histopathologic scores revealed significantly lower indications of hepatotoxicity in exercise animals as compared with control animals (score = 0.25 vs 1.50; P < 0.05). Liver damages scores between 1 and 5 were observed in 75% (9 of 12) of the control animals, whereas only 1 of 6 exercise animals had a score greater than 1 (P < 0.05). No significant difference was observed in reduced GSH levels.


CONCLUSIONS
Chronic exercise improves the detoxicant ability of the liver for halothane anesthesia as noted by the ameliorated liver damage and reduced incidence of halothane-induced hepatotoxicity in the exercise animals.
Daggan
R N
RN
Department of Anesthesiology and Department of Pathology, Cooper Hospital/UMC, Camden, NJ 08103, USA. Rndag@aol.com
Zafeiridis
A
A
Dipla
K
K
Puglia
C D
CD
Gratz
I
I
Catalano
E
E
Kendrick
Z V
ZV
D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005978:Glutathione / Q000097:blood; D006221:Halothane / Q000378:metabolism; D008099:Liver / Q000098:blood supply / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D010805:Physical Conditioning, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D013997:Time Factors
D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation; D005978:Glutathione; D006221:Halothane