Comparison between continuous brain tissue measurement and cerebrovenous measurement of pO2, pCO2 and pH in a porcine intracranial pressure model.

Simultaneous oxygen measurements in brain tissue (p(ti)O2) and hemoglobin saturation measurement in cerebrovenous blood in patients after severe head injury have shown different results regarding the comparability of the findings in respect to CPP and ICP. This is contrast to theoretical expectations. The aim of this study was to compare continuous ptiO2 measurement with oxygen partial pressure measurement in sagittal sinus (pO2cv) during simultaneously performance in an animal intracranial pressure model. For continuous measurement we used a newly available multisensor probe. We placed a Paratrend 7 probe (BSL, High Wycombe, UK) in the left frontoparietal white matter and measured ptiO2, pCO2 (ptiCO2) pH (pHti) and temperature (t(ti)) while simultaneously measuring these parameters (pcvO2, pcvCO2, pHcv, tcv) in the sagittal sinus in 9 pigs under general anaesthesia. A fogarty balloon catheter was placed supracerebellar infratentorial and inflated stepwise in order to increase ICP. The baseline levels of pO2ti, pCO2ti und pHti in the non-injured brain tissue showed a more extended heterogeneity compared to the findings in cerebrovenous blood. Both, pO2ti and pO2cv were significant correlated to the CPP decrease. In both measurement compartments pCO2 was inverse correlated to the course of CPP and seems the course of pH mainly to determine. p(ti)O2 as well as p(cv)O2 showed a close correlation to the CPP course and have proven to be qualified to indicate metabolic information about the relation of cerebral blood flow and metabolic cerebral demands. The measurement of CO2 tension in both measurement compartments shows a distinct heterogeneity of the absolute values and the results are only weak correlated to CPP. Metabolic influence on this parameter could not be revealed in the used experimental approach.