Abstract
Background: Pentoxifylline and Tacrolimus are known to improve the functional outcome of spinal cord injury (SCI). The present study aims to develop suitable rehabilitative interventions in conjunction with therapeutic agents to enhance functional recovery. Furthermore, this research aims to raise awareness among nurses about caring for SCI patients and utilize their passion for developing their caregiving skills through nursing research.
Methods: Young adult male rats were subjected to spinal trauma by the compression method of the exposed spinal cord. Animals were allocated to seven groups, each consisting of eight animals, namely Group 1 was standard uninjured control; Group 2 was sham control with laminectomy but no spinal injury; Group 3 was SCI group with laminectomy and spinal injury; Group 4 and 5 as SCI treated groups A and C, respectively, were the same as Group 3 but were treated with a daily oral administration of pentoxifylline (10 mg/kg) and tacrolimus (1 mg/kg), respectively, for 29 days and subjected to Basso-Beatie-Breshnahan behavioral test in which the hind limb function was scored from 0 (complete paralysis or paraplegia) to 21 (complete mobility), every alternate day in a “Gait Performance Tunnel”; groups 6 and 7 were as SCI treated groups B and D respectively, that was same as groups 4 and 5 except that the animals were further subjected to an enforced extra five walks as exercise in gait performance tunnel test.
Results: In both drugs, all treated groups A, B, C, and D significantly recovered in Groups B and D (p<0.001) than in Groups A and C. Furthermore, it was observed that tacrolimus was comparatively more effective than pentoxifylline. Conclusion: It is concluded that if SCI animals are subjected to extra-enforced daily behavioral exercises in addition to drug treatments, functional recovery can be improved more quickly, making it a rehabilitative activity that enhances treatments. Such studies can be innovations for nursing research.