Hydrogen Therapy Protects Lungs After Blood Flow Injury in Rats
- Authors
- Run Zou, Mao-Hua Wang, Ye Chen, Xin Fan, Bo Yang, Juan Du, Xiao-Bin Wang, Ke-Xuan Liu, Jun Zhou
- Journal
- Shock
- Year
- 2018
- DOI
- 10.1097/SHK.0000000000001194
- Study Type
- Rat
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Country
- China
- Health Condition
- Acute Lung Injury
- Body System
- Respiratory
TL;DR
A hydrogen-rich solution can reduce lung damage and improve survival rates in rats after limb blood flow is temporarily stopped and then restored.
Key Finding
Hydrogen-rich saline improved survival rates and reduced lung injury in rats after limb ischemia/reperfusion by decreasing inflammatory molecules and oxidative stress.
Summary
Researchers gave rats hydrogen-rich saline (a salt solution containing dissolved hydrogen) after temporarily cutting off blood flow to their hind legs and then restoring it. This type of injury can damage the lungs. The hydrogen-rich saline improved survival rates, reduced lung swelling and damage, and lowered inflammatory markers (chemical signals that indicate injury) in the blood and lungs compared to control rats.
Practical Takeaway
This is an early-stage animal study suggesting hydrogen-rich saline may help protect lungs from damage caused by temporary loss of blood flow to limbs. However, these results are from rats only and have not been tested in humans, so it's too early to draw conclusions about potential benefits for people undergoing vascular surgery or experiencing limb trauma.
Abstract (excerpt)
ABSTRACT Limb ischemia/reperfusion (LI/R) injury is associated with high morbidity and mortality. The hypothesis of this study is that hydrogen-rich solution could attenuate acute lung injury and improve mortality via chemerin and NLRP3 after LI/R in rats. A rat model of LI/R was performed…