Abstract
General anaesthesia affects lung volume and pulmonary gas exchange. What role is played by mechanical stimulation by the endotracheal tube? We investigated the effects of intubation on arterial oxygenation and lung volume in rats. Endotracheal intubation caused an increase in PA-aO2 and volume of trapped gas in the lung. This was accompanied by a reduction in neuropeptides and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) in trachea, bronchi and lung, and in vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) in the trachea. The increase in PA-aO2 and volume of trapped gas due to intubation was not altered in the animals given capsaicin, in which neuropeptide levels were reduced. These data suggest that the decrease in CGRP and VIP content in the airway tissues may be one of the consequences, but not the cause, of impaired gas exchange by endotracheal intubation. The increase in volume of trapped gas in the lung is apparently not mediated by activation of capsaicin-sensitive sensory nerves.
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