%0 Journal Article
%T Pre-Incisional and Multiple Intradermal Injection of N-Acetylcysteine Slightly Improves Incisional Wound Healing in an Animal Model.
%A Pascal W
%A Smoliński A
%A Gotowiec M
%A Wojtkiewicz M
%A Stachura A
%A Pełka K
%A Kopka M
%A Quinn KP
%A Woessner AE
%A Grzelecki D
%A Włodarski P
%J Int J Mol Sci
%V 25
%N 10
%D 2024 May 10
%M 38791242
%F 6.208
%R 10.3390/ijms25105200
%X The objective of this study was to investigate if delivering multiple doses of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) post-surgery in addition to pre-incisional administration significantly impacts the wound healing process in a rat model. Full-thickness skin incisions were carried out on the dorsum of 24 Sprague-Dawley rats in six locations. Fifteen minutes prior to the incision, half of the sites were treated with a control solution, with the wounds on the contralateral side treated with solutions containing 0.015%, 0.03% and 0.045% of NAC. In the case of the NAC treated group, further injections were given every 8 h for three days. On days 3, 7, 14 and 60 post-op, rats were sacrificed to gather material for the histological analysis, which included histomorphometry, collagen fiber organization analysis, immunohistochemistry and Abramov scale scoring. It was determined that scars treated with 0.015% NAC had significantly lower reepithelization than the control at day 60 post-op (p = 0.0018). Scars treated with 0.045% NAC had a significantly lower collagen fiber variance compared to 0.015% NAC at day 14 post-op (p = 0.02 and p = 0.04) and a lower mean scar width than the control at day 60 post-op (p = 0.0354 and p = 0.0224). No significant differences in the recruitment of immune cells and histological parameters were found. The results point to a limited efficacy of multiple NAC injections post-surgery in wound healing.