Development and treatment of post-traumatic pulmonary platelet trapping.

In anesthetized dogs soft tissue trauma resulting in hypovolemia was associated with pulmonary trapping of 51Cr tagged platelets. The efficacy of various forms of therapy aimed at preventing pulmonary trapping of platelets following trauma was evaluated. Lung biopsies were assayed before trauma and at hourly intervals for accumulation of autologous 51Cr tagged platelets reinfused 24 hours prior to the experiment. The study showed that pulmonary platelet trapping secondary to soft tissue trauma could be prevented by treatment with Dextran 40, Dextran 70 and methyl-prednisolone administered one hour after trauma and by pretreatment with aspirin.