Ketamine delays mortality in an experimental model of hemorrhagic shock and subsequent sepsis.
BACKGROUND
In previous studies ketamine was reported to improve survival and decrease serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) concentration after sepsis alone and after burn injury followed by sepsis. The aim of this study was to determine whether ketamine alters survival and/or IL-6 after hemorrhagic shock alone or hemorrhagic shock followed by sepsis.


METHODS
Rats were subjected to hemorrhagic shock with or without subsequent Gram-negative bacterial sepsis and were either treated with ketamine 5 mg/kg or were not treated. Blood was sampled for IL-6 determination prior to hemorrhage, at the completion of resuscitation, and at 6 and 30 h later. Mortality was recorded for 7 days following hemorrhage or hemorrhage+sepsis.


RESULTS
After hemorrhage+sepsis the time to median mortality was significantly later in the ketamine-treated group (36 h) than in the control group (12 h). At 12h the survival rate of the ketamine-treated group (100%) was significantly higher than in the control group (55%). There were no significant differences between groups with respect to IL-6 or 7-day survival after either hemorrhage+sepsis or hemorrhage alone.


CONCLUSIONS
Ketamine improved 12h survival and delayed mortality after hemorrhage+sepsis without significantly altering IL-6, and did not alter survival or IL-6 after hemorrhage alone.
Shaked
Gad
G
Department of General Surgery and Trauma Unit, Soroka Medical Centre and Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel.
Grinberg
George
G
Sufaro
Yuval
Y
Douvdevani
Amos
A
Shapira
Yoram
Y
Artru
Alan
A
Czeiger
David
D
D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000097:blood; D007649:Ketamine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018805:Sepsis / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality*; D012771:Shock, Hemorrhagic / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000401:mortality*; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D018691:Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; D015850:Interleukin-6; D007649:Ketamine