The effects of intravenous cilostazol and nimodipine on cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage in an experimental rabbit model

Abstract

Aim: Our aim in this study was to investigate the efficacy of intravenous administration of cilostazol and compare these effects with intravenous usage of nimodipine in subarachnoid hemorrhage model.

Material and methods: Twenty-five male New Zealand White rabbits were assigned randomly to 1 of 5 groups. Animals in group 1 (n=5) served as controls, group 2 (n=5) was the SAH-only group, group 3 (n=5) was treated with intravenous 10 mg/kg cilostazol, group 4 (n=5) was treated with 0.05 mg/kg intravenous nimodipine, and group 5 (n=5) served as the vehicle group and treated with a mixture of dimethyl sulfoxide and phosphate buffer solution. Basilar arteries were removed from the brain stems and analyzed. The vessels were measured using computer-assisted morphometry (SPOT for Windows Version 4.1). Statistical comparisons were performed using the Kruskall-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests.

Results: Basilar artery wall thicknesses in group 3 and 4 were smaller than the group 2 and this was statistically significant at p < 0.05. The mean arterial cross-sectional areas in group 3 and 4 were higher than group 2 and this was also statistically significant at p < 0.05.

Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that intravenous administration of both cilostazol and nimodipine significantly attenuates cerebral vasospasm after SAH.