• Scott L Fahrner, Steven R Shackford, Paul Bourguignon, Martin Bednar, and Lori Shatney-Leach.
• Department of Surgery, College of Medicine, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont 05401, USA.
• J Trauma. 2002 Feb 1; 52 (2): 285-92.

BackgroundMultiple investigations have demonstrated that hypertonic saline (HS) diminishes the response of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) to stimulation. Recent meta-analysis suggests that hypertonic saline in dextran (HSD) is clinically superior to HS. No work to date has examined the effect of added dextran on this immunomodulatory property.MethodsHuman PMNs were exposed to media of varying osmolarity (220-360 mOsm/L) and stimulated with f-met-leu-phe with or without dextran present in the medium. Cell volume, respiratory burst, PMN aggregation, and beta(2)-integrin (CD18) expression were measured.ResultsStimulation with f-met-leu-phe increased cell volume, respiratory burst, aggregation, and CD18 expression. The increases in cell volume, respiratory burst, and aggregation were significantly attenuated by exposure to hypertonic medium. The addition of dextran to the media did not change the results.ConclusionThe alterations in PMN function associated with HS are not changed or attenuated by the addition of dextran, suggesting that the clinically superior HSD may have effects similar to HS in mitigating the tissue damage associated with activated PMNs.

31 keywords...

hide…