The effect of hypoxia on brain edema--the promoting effect of superimposed hypercapnia or hypertension.

The effects of hypoxia and superimposed hypercapnia or hypertension during hypoxia on brain tissue water content, pH, and electric activity were studied in Sprague-Dawley and stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. Auditory brainstem responses and sensory evoked potentials were recorded during the experiment as the indices for cerebral oxygen metabolism. The brains were removed immediately, 1 day, and 2 days after hypoxic insult for gravimetric study. The brain water content increased in all groups on the 1st and 2nd days after hypoxia. The percentage change from the control water content increased only on the 1st day in hypoxic rats. In contrast, it increased on both the 1st and 2nd days after hypoxia in hypercapnic or hypertensive rats. The evoked potentials of hypoxic and hypercapnic-hypoxic rats showed that peak latencies were prolonged significantly during hypoxia and recovered 1 and 2 days after hypoxia. The brain tissue pH decreased during hypoxia and recovered after hypoxia. This study suggests that brain edema develops within 2 days of hypoxic insult and that superimposed hypercapnia or hypertension promotes the brain edema.