Objectives: Previous studies have demonstrated that ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) is a useful marker for the diagnosis of ischemic events. This study aimed to determine the value of ischemia-modified plasma albumin in the early diagnosis of acute mesenteric ischemia in an experimental model.
Methods: The study was performed on 32 Wistar albino rats divided into control (n = 8), sham (n = 8), 2-hour (n = 8), and 6-hour (n = 8) ischemia groups. Mesenteric ischemia was created by arterial occlusion, and then blood samples (2 mL) were collected and centrifuged. Serum levels of IMA were measured by a rapid calorimetric test that determined the reduced cobalt binding to albumin. For histopathologic evaluation, samples of the small intestine were obtained from the animals after they were euthanized at the end of the experiment.
Results: Histopathologic damage of the intestinal wall correlated with the duration of ischemia. While the mean pathology scores of the 2- and 6-hour ischemia groups were different from each other, IMA levels (mean ± SD) in the four groups were not significantly different from each other: 0.55 ± 0.07 absorbance units (ABSU) in the control group, 0.62 ± 0.09 ABSU in the sham group, 0.60 ± 0.07 ABSU in the 2-hour ischemia group, and 0.64 ± 0.12 ABSU in the 6-hour ischemia group (p = 0.153).
Conclusions: Serum IMA values were not useful in the early diagnosis of acute mesenteric ischemia. Further studies to investigate ischemic and nonischemic conditions that affect IMA levels are needed.
© 2011 by the Society for Academic Emergency Medicine.