Effects of sevoflurane on cognitive deficit, motor function, and histopathology after cerebral ischemia in rats.

Background: The volatile anesthetic sevoflurane exhibits neuroprotective properties when assessed for motor function and histopathology after cerebral ischemia in rats. Damage of hippocampal neurons after ischemia relates to a number of cognitive deficits that are not revealed by testing animals for motor function. Therefore, the present study evaluates cognitive and behavioral function as well as hippocampal damage in rats subjected to cerebral ischemia under sevoflurane compared with fentanyl/nitrous oxide (N 2 O)/O 2 anesthesia. Methods: Thirty-four rats were trained for 10 days using a hole-board test to detect changes in cognitive and behavioral function. Rats were randomly assigned to…