Recombinant tissue plasminogen activator prevents intimal hyperplasia after balloon angioplasty in hypercholesterolemic rabbits

The purpose of this study was to clarify whether continuous infusion of recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) prevents intimal hyperplasia at the site of arterial injury. Forty-three Kurosawa and Kusanagi hypercholesterolemic (KHC) rabbits which underwent balloon angioplasty of the right common iliac artery were randomly divided into 2 groups; rtPA for 7 days (n = 29) and untreated (n = 14). The former group was subdivided into a high-dose group (n = 15) (2 mg/kg per day continuously for 7 days after 3 mg/kg for 4 h) and a low-dose group (n = 14) (0.6 mg/kg per day for 7 days after 0.6 mg/kg for 4 h). Balloon angioplasty was performed with a 2.5-mm balloon (3 x 60-sec, 6-atm inflations at 60-sec intervals) Ih after the initiation of rtPA infusion via an ear vein. The iliac arteries of the rabbits were histologically studied at 28 days. The cross-sectional areas of the intima, media, and adventitia were calculated at the site of intimal hyperplasia. The intimal cross-sectional area was 0.07 +/- 0.11 (mean +/- SD) mm(2) for the high-dose rtPA group and 0.11 +/- 0.07 mm(2) for the low-dose rtPA group, and both of these values were significantly less than that for the control group (0.57 +/- 0.21 mm(2), p < 0.01). The ratio of the intimal to medial cross-sectional area was significantly (p < 0.01) lower for the rtPA groups than for the control group (high-dose rtPA; 0.10 +/- 0.13, low-dose. rtPA; 0.21 +/- 0.19, control; 1.25 +/- 0.55). In conclusion, continuous infusion of rtPA for 7 days prevented intimal hyperplasia after balloon injury.