Differential effect of swelling and anoxia on kidney function and its consequences on the mechanism of action of intracellular organ preservation solutions.

In order to differentiate the effects of swelling and anoxia on kidney function, a canine experimental model is used. After complete liberation of kidneys and their vessels from adjacent tissues, each kidney is submitted to 10 min of hypotonic flushing, or to 60 min of normothermic anoxia. Swelling resulting from these two procedures are equal and permit the study of the consequences of anoxia independently from swelling. Edema is determined by water content and renal blood flow is measured. Kidney function is studied by time of restoration of urinary flow, creatinine, and inulin clearances and fractional water reabsorption. The results show that nonanoxic edema is much less damaging than anoxic edema and consequently that anoxic injury is not the simple consequence of spatial disruption of cell architecture. Since many works have shown the beneficial effects of intracellular organ preservation solutions and consequently that anoxia is better tolerated in the absence of swelling, it can be deduced that injuries induced by anoxia and by swelling are cumulative and that the efficiency of intracellular solutions cannot be attributed solely to the preventive effect on swelling, considered as lethal for the cell.