Ligadura de la arteria coronaria descendente anterior izquierda en ratas: Técnica quirúrgica

background: an experimental model for ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery (ada) in rats has been commonly used in research into ischemic cardiopathy. however, this procedure is very difficult, with a high mortality rate. there is little information in the literature regarding its technical aspects. our objective was to describe a surgical technique for ada ligation in rats. material and method: fifty-one sprague-dawley male rats weighting 230 ± 20 gr were anaesthetized and connected to mechanical ventilation. through a left-side thoracothomy we ligated the ada 2 mm below the junction of the pulmonary artery and the left atrial appendage. the next day we performed transthoracic echocardiography to confirm our results. results: the mortality rate was 7.8% (4 out of 51). the main cause of death was hemorrhage during surgery. the average time for the procedure was 45 ± 5 min. we confirmed hypokinesia of the anterior lateral wall in 100% of the surviving rats. discussion: this procedure was reproducible and safe, with less than 10% mortality.