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(Stroke. 2007;38:3289.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Research Letters

Vascular Permeability Precedes Spontaneous Intracerebral Hemorrhage in Stroke-Prone Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats

Jin-Moo Lee, MD, PhD; Guihua Zhai, PhD; Qingwei Liu, MS; Ernesto R. Gonzales, BSN; Kejie Yin, MD, PhD; Ping Yan, PhD; Chung Y. Hsu, MD, PhD; Katie D. Vo, MD Weili Lin, PhD

From Department of Neurology (J.-M.L., E.R.G., K.Y., P.Y.), Department of Radiology (K.D.V.), Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Mo; Department of Radiology (Q.L., W.L.), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, NC; Topnotch Stroke Center (C.Y.H.), Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Radiology (G.Z.), University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.

Correspondence to Weili Lin, PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Department of Radiology, CB #7515, Chapel Hill, NC 27599. E-mail weili_lin{at}med.unc.edu

Abstract

Background and Purpose— Stroke-prone spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHRsp) fed a high-salt diet develop malignant hypertension, blood–brain barrier breakdown, and spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). The precise spatial and temporal relationship between these events has not been well-delineated.

Methods— Ten SHRsp male rats, fed a high-salt diet, were imaged weekly using MRI, starting at 12 weeks of age. T1-weighted (with and without Gd), T2-weighted, and T2* sequences were acquired. Permeability maps were calculated.

Results— Seven SHRsp rats had spontaneous ICH develop before death. Five of the 7 rats had focally increased vascular permeability at the site of the ICH; 3 of these rats had vascular permeability 1 to 2 weeks before spontaneous ICH.

Conclusions— Salt-loaded SHRsp rats have increased vascular permeability up to 2 weeks before ICH, predicting hemorrhage both in space and time. These results suggest that hypertensive ICH is preceded by focal vasculopathy detectable by Gd leak.

Key Words: hypertension • intracerebral hemorrhage • MRI