title: Epinephrine's effect in varying concentrations on the end artery organ in an animal model.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the concentration of epinephrine that causes end artery necrosis and ischemia.
  
  
  METHODS
  An experimental study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Animal Laboratory of Khordad Hospital, Tehran, Iran, from September 2007 to June 2008.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was done on 54 ear flaps from 9 rabbits [9 (rabbits) x2 (ears) x3 (splits) =54] divided into three groups of 18 ear flaps each. Nine of the ear flaps were randomized as control and nine of them were randomized as study group. The different concentrations of epinephrine and lidocaine 1% were injected in study groups but only 1% lidocaine was injected in control groups. Study group 1 received 1/200000, group 2 received 1/100000 and group 3 received 1/500000 concentration of epinephrine respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no evidence of necrosis in the control and study groups 1 and 2. However, 4 out of 9 of the ear flaps showed clear evidence of tissue necrosis in group 3.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Injecting epinephrine in 1/200000 and 1/100000 concentrations had no side effect for the end artery of the rabbit ear flaps, but 1/50000 concentration is shown that it can cause tissue necrosis. Further studies need to be done in order to find out the effects of epinephrine with the same concentrations on the human end artery.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Abdoljalil Kalantar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Hormozi
authors.forename: Hamid
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zendehnam
authors.forename: Seyed Nejat
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Hosseini
authors.forename: Mehdi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rasti
authors.forename: Khalil
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Rostami
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hamraz
mesh_terms: D000779:Anesthetics, Local / Q000633:toxicity; D000818:Animals; D001158:Arteries / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004423:Ear / Q000098:blood supply*; D004837:Epinephrine / Q000633:toxicity*; D007511:Ischemia / Q000139:chemically induced*; D008012:Lidocaine / Q000633:toxicity; D023421:Models, Animal; D009336:Necrosis / Q000139:chemically induced; D011817:Rabbits; D011897:Random Allocation; D014662:Vasoconstrictor Agents / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D000779:Anesthetics, Local; D014662:Vasoconstrictor Agents; D008012:Lidocaine; D004837:Epinephrine