Budesonide ameliorates early portal hypertension in the rat: possible antiexudative splanchnic action.

Major portal pressure increase occurs on the second day post-stenosing-ligation of the portal vein in the rat and it is associated with pancreatic edema, intraperitoneal free exudate, hypoalbuminemia and hypoproteinemia. All this suggests the development of a regional exudative inflammatory response. In order to verify this hypothesis the steroid budesonide, whose antiinflammatory activity could prevent these alterations, was administered to rats with prehepatic portal hypertension. Wistar male rats were divided into the following groups: Control rats that were administered saline solution (CS; n = 10), Control rats that were administered budesonide (36 mg/kg per day; CB; n = 10), triple stenosing ligation of portal vein (TSLP) with saline solution (n = 10) and triple stenosing ligation of portal vein with budesonide (36 mg/kg per day; n = 10). In rats with prehepatic portal hypertension at 48 h of postoperative evolution, budesonide decreases the incidence of pancreatic edema, of peritoneal free exudate, of mesenteric adenopathies and prevents hypoproteinemia, hypoalbuminemia and hyper-beta-globulinemia. Some of the macroscopic intra-abdominal alterations and some of the changes in the electrophoretic pattern found in portal hypertensive rats could have an inflammatory etiopathogeny because budesonide shows an effective prophylaxis.