Abstract Objective The intestine is one of the most seriously injured organs during neonatal asphyxia. But a model for studying the perinatal intestinal injury caused by asphyxia is absent. This paper described a model of intestinal damage produced by reversible intrauterine ischemia in rats. Methods The model of acute reversible intrauterine ischemia was established by clamping the arteries and veins on one side of the uterus and ovaries in pregnant Wistar rats (E21) for 20 minutes. The fetal rats on the occluded side of the uterus were used as the Ischemia group and the rats on the other side were used as the Control group. After 20 minutes of vascular occlusion, the uteri were opened and the pups were removed. In each group, 18 pups were sacrificed at 0, 24, 48 and 72 hrs after ischemia, respectively. The intestinal mucosal damage index (IMDI) was evaluated. Results After ishemia, the pups in the Ischemia group were cyanotic or pale, listless, and hypopneic, while the control pups manifested normal. The intestinal mucosa of controls were not damaged. In the Ischemia group, intestinal damage reached a peak at 48 hrs post-ischemia, with an IMDI that was significantly increased above controls (3.40±0.16 vs 0.00±0.00, P<0.01). At 72 hrs post-ischemia, the changes of intestinal tissues had largely recovered and the IMDI decreased to 0.60 ± 0.21. Conclusions The animal model of asphyxia induced perinatal intestinal injury can be established by clamping the arteries and veins on one side of the uterus and ovaries in pregnant rats.
