Pathological study on peripheral vessel injury induced by explosion shock wave

Objective To observe pathological features of peripheral vessel injury caused by ex-plosion shock wave so as to provide theoretical basis for emergency treatment, prevention and complication reduction of war extremity injuries. Methods A total of 18 rabbits were randomly divided into three groups (six rabbits in each group) and placed respectively at 1, 2 and 3 m away from the explosion cen-ter. The animal model with blast injury was made by using fluid dynamite that electrically exploded at 60 cm above the ground. The physical parameters of blast wave were recorded using pressure transducers (PCB, UAS). After explosion, the femoral arteries were examined grossly, histologically and immunohis-tochemically. Results The results showed that vascular endothelial cells were denudated, the spaces of contractile fiber cells increased and appeared puff, the vassular elastic fibers ruptured, flexed and de-formed visibly. Some parts of the vessel wall ruptured completely or partly, leading to bleeding. TUNEL staining and fluorescence microscope found large number of apoptotic cells in endothelium layer, smooth muscle layer and membrana adventitia layer of the blood vessels. Conclusion Explosion shock wave can result in severe large blood vessel injury, which should be paid much attention during treatment of ex-plosion shock injury. Key words: Blast injuries;  Blood vessels;  Apoptosis