Effects of the general anaesthetic agent, propofol, on erythrocyte deformability.

OBJECTIVES Propofol is an anesthetic agent frequently used for sedation and general anesthesia. The purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of propofol, a general anesthetic, on erythrocyte deformability in rats. METHODOLOGY The study was performed on 20 male and 20 female rats, with 10 rats in each study group and 10 rats in each control group. The rats in the study group were administered propofol (150 mg.kg(-1)) intraperitoneally, and the rats in the control group were administered SF. Erythrocyte packs were prepared using heparinized total blood samples. Deformability measurements were done by erythrocyte suspensions in PBS buffer. A constant flow filtrometer system was used to measure erythrocyte deformability, and the relative resistance was calculated. RESULTS The use of propofol resulted in the increase in the relative resistance, which is an indicator for the erythrocyte deformability in both male and female rats (p = 0.002, p = 0.042, respectively). CONCLUSION A negative change in the erythrocyte deformability may cause a functional deterioration in blood flow and tissue perfusion (Fig. 1, Ref. 23).