title: Single-dose Toxicity of Guseonwangdo-go Glucose 20% Intravenous Injection in Sprague-Dawley Rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was performed to evaluate the single-dose intravenous toxicity of Guseonwangdo-go glucose 20% pharmacopuncture.
  
  
  METHODS
  Forty Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups of five males and five females per group: an intravenous (IV) injection of 1.0 mL of normal saline solution per animal was administered to group 1 (G1, control group); an IV injections of 0.1, 0.5, and 1.0 mL of Guseonwangdo-go glucose pharmacopuncture per animal were administered to experimental groups 2, 3, and 4 (G2, G3, and G4), respectively. General symptoms, body weights, hematological and biochemical test results, and necropsy histopathological observation were recorded in all groups. In the statistical analyses, significance was determined by using the one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). The significance level was 0.05 in all comparisons.
  
  
  RESULTS
  For 14 days, no deaths or abnormalities were observed in any of the 4 groups. The body weights of all groups continuously increased during the observation period. In the hematological test, the WBC count was significantly increased in female rats of G4 compared to the control group, but this difference was considered not to be statistically meaningful. No significant biochemical changes were observed. On necropsy, crust formation was observed in one rat of the control group, and granulation tissues were observed around the injection site in one rat of G4; these changes were concluded to have been caused by injection of the needle into a vein.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings suggest that the lethal dose of Guseonwangdo-go glucose pharmacopuncture is more than 1.0 mL per animal in both male and female rats. Thus, we can conclude that Guseonwangdo-go glucose pharmacopuncture injection is relatively safe to use in acute toxicity tests. Further studies are needed to establish more detailed evidences of its toxicity.
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Yu-Jong
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Su-Jeong
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Jo
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Young-Doo
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Eun-Jung
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Kap-Sung
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Acupuncture &Moxibustion Medicine, Dongguk University College of Korean Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung-Deok
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Lee
keywords: Guseonwangdo-go; herbal medicine; intravenous injection; pharmacopuncture; toxicity