Injury due to extravasation of thiopental and propofol: Risks/effects of local cooling/warming in rats

Inadvertent leakage of medications with vesicant properties can cause severe necrosis in tissue, which can have devastating long-term consequences. The aim of this study was to evaluate the extent of extravasation injury induced by thiopental and propofol, and the effects of cooling or warming of local tissue on extravasation injury at macroscopic and histopathologic levels. Rats were administered intradermally thiopental (2.5mg/100µL) or propofol (1.0mg/100µL). Rats were assigned randomly to three groups: control (no treatment), cooling and warming. Local cooling (18–20°C) or warming (40–42°C) was applied for 3h immediately after agent injection. Lesion sizes (erythema, induration, ulceration, necrosis) were monitored after agent injection. Histopathology was evaluated in skin biopsies taken 24h after agent injection. Thiopental injection induced severe skin injury with necrosis. Peak lesions developed within 24h and healed gradually 18–27 days after extravasation. Propofol induced inflammation but no ulceration, and lesions healed within 1–2 days. Local cooling reduced thiopental- and propofol-induced extravasation injuries but warming strongly exacerbated the skin lesions (e.g., degeneration, necrosis) induced by extravasation of thiopental and propofol. Thiopental can be classified as a “vesicant” that causes tissue necrosis and propofol can be classified as an “irritant”. Local cooling protects (at least in part) against skin disorders induced by thiopental and propofol, whereas warming is harmful.