Serum endocan level and the severity of spinal cord injury

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the endocan level may be related to the severity of spinal cord injury. BACKGROUND: Several biomarkers were evaluated for this purpose, but endocan has never been studied before. It is correlated to endothelial dysfunction and ischemia, which are the characteristics of spinal cord injury in most cases. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 21 male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing 300-350 g were randomly divided into three groups. In Group I, only a laminectomy was performed; in Group II, a mild SCI was performed after laminectomy; and, in Group III, a severe SCI was performed after laminectomy. At 48 h after the injury, after neurological assessment by Tarlov method, all animals were euthanized. A 5 cc blood sample was drawn for biochemical analysis, and spinal cord tissues were removed for histopathological examination. RESULTS: The difference between Groups I and III was statistically significant (p < 0.05). There was also a moderately positive correlation between the severity of SCI and the endocan level (r = 0.59, p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The endocan level may be used as an indicator to determine prognosis after SCI (Tab. 1, Fig. 2, Ref. 24). Text in PDF www.elis.sk.