Characteristics of Irreversibly Constricted Cerebral Blood Vessels

Cerebral vasospasm is a biphasic event resulting in most cases in an irreversibly constricted cerebral blood vessel. The major initiator of vasoconstriction is subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) or trauma. Several animal models have been developed but none approximates the pathological sequellae seen in man after SAH. We have refined a dog SAH model which possesses many of the physiological and ultrastructural features seen in man after SAH induced vasospasm and report some clinically relevant findings