The role of prostacyclin in the mesenteric traction syndrome during anesthesia for abdominal aortic reconstructive surgery.

Mesenteric traction syndrome consists of sudden tachycardia, hypotension, and cutaneous hyperemia, and frequently occurs during mesenteric traction in patients undergoing abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) reconstructive surgery. The etiology and clinical impact of this phenomenon are unknown, but the symptoms suggest a release of vasoactive materials from the mesenteric vascular bed. Thirty-one patients who underwent AAA surgery were studied. Mesenteric traction was accompanied by a decrease in systolic (p = 0.005) and diastolic (p less than 0.05) blood pressures, and in systemic vascular resistance (p less than 0.005), and was accompanied by an increase in heart rate (HR) (p less than 0.005), and cardiac output (p = 0.01). These hemodynamic changes coincided with an increase (p less than 0.001) in plasma concentrations of 6-keto-prostaglandin F1 (6-K-PGF1). No apparent change was found in prostaglandin E2, thromboxane B2, and histamine concentrations. The concentration of 6-K-PGF1 was correlated with diastolic blood pressure (r = -0.52, p less than 0.005) and HR (r = 0.65, p less than 0.001). Cutaneous hyperemia was observed in 58% of the patients. In an additional six patients, who had taken aspirin daily before AAA surgery, no significant changes were observed in the hemodynamic measurements or 6-K-PGF1 concentrations. These data suggest that mesenteric traction syndrome may be mediated at least in part by a selective release of prostacyclin.