Fluorescein Angiography in Microvascular Surgery: A Study Using the Rodent Artery

Fluorescein angiography was carried out on 45 Ostpon Mendelson rats with a view toward detecting injury areas following microvascular anastomoses. Decreased fluorescence was seen regardless if the injury occurred prior to or after the injection of fluorescein, and also if postin-jury angiography was filmed during direct arterial injection (mainly fluorescence from the blood stream) or one to five minutes later (mainly vessel wall fluorescence). The effects of injury paralleled the effects of positive direct current applied to the fluorescent vessel. Focal absence of fluorescence also occurred at sites of clotting or intraluminal adventitia deposition at anastomotic sites in spite of good vessel wall pulsations. The procedure may prove to be worthwhile and preferable to risky contrast x-ray angiography during intra-operative transcranial microvascular anastomoses for cerebrovascular insufficiency.