Correlation of local blood flow, glucose consumption and probability of necrosis following a middle cerebral artery occlusion in the cat.

At defined coronal sections, the surface area of infarcted tissue was measured 4 days after the occlusion of the middle artery in 11 cats. In groups of cats treated with ifenprodil (5.6 and 16.7 microgram/kg . min over 3 h. 5 min after the occlusion), the infarcted surface was significantly decreased. The topographic localization of the infarction was studied in control and treated cats. This established necrosis was correlated with measures of focal cerebral blood flow and glucose consumption 3.5 h after the middle cerebral artery occlusion. Grey matter blood flow was universally low in untreated cats, but in cats treated with ifenprodil (5.6 microgram/kg . min) cortical and caudate nucleus blood flow was 2-3 times greater, even in those regions that were later infarcted in the treated cats. Glucose consumption was similarly reduced in untreated cats but there was little difference between the control and drug-treated cats except in some areas where drug treatment appeared to further reduce the values for focal glucose consumption. These regions correlated with those in which infarction was later found in the cats treated with ifenprodil. It is hoped that such correlations between pathology. flow and metabolism could help the search for effective pharmacotherapy of cerebrovascular disease.