title: Surgical skin markers impair human saphenous vein graft smooth muscle and endothelial function.
abstract: Marking human saphenous vein graft (HSV) with a surgical skin marker to prevent twisting on implantation is a common practice in peripheral and coronary artery bypass procedures. This study is designed to examine the effects of surgical skin markers on the HSV smooth muscle and endothelial  functional responses. De-identified HSV remnants were collected during peripheral and coronary artery bypass procedures. Physiologic responses of the HSV were measured using a muscle bath. Veins that were marked with surgical skin markers intraoperatively generated significantly less contractile  force to depolarizing KCl (110 mM) and receptor-mediated contractile agonists than unmarked HSV, suggesting that surgical skin markers impaired HSV smooth muscle contractility. To directly access the effects of chemical components in the surgical skin markers, unmarked HSV was exposed to isopropyl  alcohol (a solvent commonly used in surgical skin markers) or methylene blue (a dye). Smooth muscle contractility was significantly reduced by isopropyl alcohol and methylene blue. Endothelial-dependent relaxation to carbachol was significantly reduced after exposure to surgical skin markers.  Our data demonstrated that marking HSV with surgical skin markers reduces smooth muscle and endothelial functional viability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
authors.forename: Susan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Eagle
authors.forename: Colleen M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Brophy
authors.forename: Padmini
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Komalavilas
authors.forename: Kyle
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hocking
authors.forename: Gowthami
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Putumbaka
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Osgood
authors.forename: Kevin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sexton
authors.forename: Marzia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leacche
authors.forename: Joyce
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cheung-Flynn
mesh_terms: D004396:Coloring Agents; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D009119:Muscle Contraction; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011300:Preoperative Care; D012501:Saphenous Vein / Q000637:transplantation*; D012867:Skin; D014656:Vascular Surgical Procedures
chemical_list: D004396:Coloring Agents