Evaluation of the neuroprotective effects of anti-inflammatory drugs in experimental spinal cord damage.

In this study, we aimed to investigate the effectiveness of etofenamate and compare it with methyl prednisolone in the experimental spinal cord trauma model. A total of 31 Wistar Albino rats weighed between 220 and 270 gr were used in this study. The rats were divided into three groups as the control; posttraumatic normal saline (NS), trauma + E; posttraumatic etofenamate; and trauma + methylprednisolone, posttraumatic methylprednisolone. All medications were given into the peritoneum. Six hours after trauma and drug administration, approximately 2 cm of cord segment in the area subjected to dorsal laminectomy was dissected from the dura spinal cord and removed. The samples were histopathologically examined. In this study, significant differences were found both between trauma + NS and trauma + methylprednisolone, and between trauma NS and trauma + etofenamate, and trauma + methylprednisolone and trauma + etofenamate groups according to the Ivan Damjanov criteria and in terms of petechial hemorrhage, diffuse bleeding, loss in the regulation of grey and white matters, edema, necrosis, and cystic degeneration findings. According to the Ivan Damjanov criteria, trauma + NS group was found as Grades 2-3, trauma + etofenamate group as Grade 1, and trauma + methylprednisolone as Grades 1-2. Neuroprotective effect of etofenamate was found to be stronger than that of methyl prednisolone in rats with induced posttraumatic spinal cord damage (Tab. 4, Ref. 24). Keywords: etofenamate, methylprednisolone, spinal trauma, rats.