Background: This study aimed to establish a traumatic hemorrhagic shock (THS) model in swine and examine pathophysiological characteristics in a dry-heat environment.
Methods: Forty domestic Landrace piglets were randomly assigned to four study groups: normal temperature non-shock (NS), normal temperature THS (NTHS), desert dry-heat non-shock (DS), and desert dry-hot THS (DTHS) groups. The groups were exposed to either normal temperature (25°C) or dry heat (40.5°C) for 3 h. To induce THS, anesthetized piglets in the NTHS and DTHS groups were subjected to liver trauma and hypovolemic shock until death, and piglets in the NS and DS groups were euthanized at 11 h and 4 h, respectively. Body temperature, blood gas, cytokine production, and organ function were assessed before and after environmental exposure at 0 h and at every 30 min after shock to death. Hemodynamics was measured post exposure and post-shock at 0 h and at every 30 min after shock to death.
Results: Survival, body temperature, oxygen delivery, oxygen consumption, and cardiac output were significantly different for traumatic hemorrhagic shock in the dry-heat groups compared to those in the normal temperature groups. Lactic acid and IL-6 had a marked increase at 0.5 h, followed by a progressive and rapid increase in the DTHS group.
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the combined action of a dry-heat environment and THS leads to higher oxygen metabolism, poorer hemodynamic stability, and earlier and more severe inflammatory response with higher mortality.