J Am Assoc Lab Anim
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J Am Assoc Lab Anim · Jan 2006
A simple, inexpensive, and effective light- carrying laryngoscopic blade for orotracheal intubation of rats.
The research paradigm of using large laboratory animals, in which oroendotracheal intubations are relatively easy, is shifting toward the use of small animals, such as rodents, in which oropharyngeal access is limited, the arytenoid cartilage cycles are faster, and the glottis is much smaller. The considerable growth recently seen in preclinical imaging studies is accompanied by an increased number of rats and mice requiring in vivo intubation for airway management. ⋯ I fashioned a light-carrying laryngoscopic blade (laryngoscope) from readily available acrylic-polymethyl methacrylate tubing and used it to perform rapid, effective tracheal intubation in rats. The laryngoscope design and intubation techniques are presented.
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J Am Assoc Lab Anim · Jan 2006
Effect of noise on the morphology of the intestinal mucosa in laboratory rats.
To determine whether noise-induced stress disrupts the intestinal mucosa of laboratory rats, one group of 8 rats ("noise" rats) was subjected to 15 min of white noise (90 dB) daily for 3 wk. Another group ("quiet"rats) was housed for 3 wk in an acoustically similar room but with no additional noise. A 3rd group ("recovery" rats) was housed in the noise room for 3 wk and then in the quiet room for a further 3 wk. ⋯ In addition, mucosal epithelial cells of noise rats were often separated, sometimes detaching from the basement membrane, whereas those of quiet rats were intact. Behaviorally, noise rats exhibited significantly more grooming and rearing than quiet rats. Compared with noise rats, recovery rats showed no reduction in mast cell degranulation or mean width of villus lamina propria, but there were increased numbers of secreting goblet cells in villi adjacent to Peyer patches and some recovery of epithelial integrity.