Lisbeth Myhre

Influences of axial load and blood pressure on the position of the rabbit's incisor tooth

Changes in the axial position of the left upper incisor in response to loading by 5-20 g were measured with ultrasonic technique in anesthetized rabbits. The time-response of the load-induced intrusion described a biphasic curve, with a steep initial part followed by a slower part. Maximum amplitudes after 20 s increased with increasing loads. A rise in arterial blood pressure (aortic balloon inflation) resulted in extrusion, while i.v. injection of noradrenaline or papaverine caused intrusion and extrusion, respectively. The responses to loading and changes in blood pressure were largely unaffected by transection of the root, but the effects of pressure changes were severely diminished by local infiltration of the periodontium with noradrenaline. Participation of periodontal blood vessels in the damping of load-induced intrusion was excluded by the finding of roughly equal intrusion curves at low, normal and high blood pressure and up to 38 h after death. We conclude that the resting position of the rabbits incisor is greatly influenced by arterial blood pressure, via the periodontal vessels. The intrusion in response to loading by up to 20 g is resisted by periodontal fibers only, the blood vessels or the pulpal and periapical tissues and pressure taking no part.

Effects of Salmon Calcitonin on Mechanical Properties of Healing and Intact Bone and Skin in Rats

Mechanical properties of healing femoral fractures, intact femora, healing skin wounds and intact skin, have been studied in young male rats during treatment with salmon calcitonin (CT) (3 MCR-U/kg body weight/day). Serum ionized calcium was reduced after each CT injection, and served as a control of the biological activity of the administered hormone. CT did not influence mechanical properties of healing fractures, intact bones or skin wounds. Neither did it change bone growth or body weight of the treated rats. In contrast, injections of the hormone impaired mechanical properties of intact skin Thus, the tensile strength and the ultimate elongation of skin specimens from CT treated rats were reduced by about 20 and 10 per cent respectively compared to controls after 30 days of treatment. The results of the present study do not support the use of salmon CT in the treatment of fractures.

Inhibitory effect of propranolol on tetanic contraction in rabbit.

The effects of propranolol on electrical and mechanical activity during tetanic stimulation of the diaphragm and leg muscles, and on the heart rate, were studied in the anaesthetized rabbit. Propranolol (from 0.5 mg/kg) reduced the EMG evoked in diaphragm by phrenic nerve stimulation (50/sec) and the EMG and force of contraction during periods of increased respiratory drive obtained by partial tracheal obstruction. The heart rate was lowered by 10-25%. In the indirectly or directly stimulated leg muscles, the drug induced high frequency inhibition of EMG and tetanic contractions (100/sec) without affecting twitch contractions. The inhibitory effect of propranolol on skeletal muscle was probably not caused by beta-adrenergic block, but by stabilization of the sarcolemma. The results suggest that the high frequency inhibitory effect might contribute to the fatigue and reduced work capacity frequently observed when high doses of propranolol are given to man and animals.

Increase in plasma calcitonin following femoral fracture in rats.

The secretion of calcitonin (CT) has been studied in male rats following a standardized, left femoral fracture after administration of subcutaneous fluanisone and fentanyl citrate anaesthesia. Twenty-five minutes after the fracture, the plasma concentrations of CT were increased by about 20 per cent in young and by about 60 per cent in adult rats compared to prefracture levels of the hormone. Three weeks later, plasma CT had decreased and was not significantly different from prefracture levels. Anaesthesia combined with femoral fracture did not influence plasma calcium significantly, whereas the plasma concentrations of calcium increased in young control rats during 35 minutes of anaesthesia alone. Plasma CT, however, remained unchanged in these control rats in the same period. In rats with a transplanted, CT-secreting, medullary thyroid carcinoma, femoral fracture did not alter the already high plasma concentrations of CT. It is suggested that increase in CT secretion is part of a general response to trauma.