Objectives: Extravasation injury is characterized by leakage of pharmacologic or non-physiologic substances from the vessel into the tissue, causing destruction. Full-thickness skin necrosis after extravasation of the widely used chemotherapeutic agent doxorubicin, is a significant source of morbidity in cancer patients. This progressive tissue necrosis may lead to pain, ulceration and disfiguring tissue loss. Although, various treatment options have been proposed for this type of injury, there is no consensus regarding the management of such lesions. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of pentoxifylline and the relationship between usage duration and efficiency of the drug as a treatment in a rat extravasation model.
Study Design: The study was done on forty Wistar-Albino rats, weighing 300 to 350 g, All rats received 1 mg of doxorubicin in 1 cc of saline intradermal flank injection to stimulate extravasation injury. The rats were divided into three groups and intraperitoneal pentoxifylline of 50 mg/kg/day was administered within 12-hour intervals. Group1: they got the treatment on the same day with the injury (n=10). Group 2: they got the treatment 1 day after the injury (n=10). Group 3: Control group (saline infusion was administered). At the end of seventh, tenth, twelfth and fifteenth days, the size of ulcers at the injection site were calculated via Planimetri ® software image analysis program. A biopsy specimen, including all necrotic tissue and surrounding healthy tissue, was obtained at the end of the fifteenth day.
Results: In groups 1and 2 there were statistically significant differences in the sizes of necrosis compared with control group (P
Key words: Extravasation injury, pentoxifylline, doxorubicin
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