The neuroprotective effects of aspirin following crush injury to rat sciatic nerve

Aspirin has been reported to be neuroprotective and produce some benefits for central nervous system diseases. However, the possibility of using aspirin as a neuroprotective agent for peripheral nerve injuries has rarely been reported thus far. The aim of the present study was to investigate the possibly beneficial effects of aspirin on sciatic nerve crush injury therapy in rats. Crush injury animal model was prepared with Sprague-Dawley rats. The animals were evenly divided into high-dose aspirin group, low-dose aspirin group, and vehicle group. Aspirin solution or normal saline were intraperitoneally injected once a day for 28 days after sciatic nerve crush injury. A sham-operative group was also added as normal control. The results from walking track analysis and electrophysiological assessment indicated that motor functional recovery in the aspirin groups were better than that in the vehicle group. Morphometric analysis of regenerated nerves and Fluoro-Gold retrograde tracing demonstrated that axonal regeneration in the aspirin groups was superior to that in the vehicle group. Our findings suggest that aspirin might be used as a neuroprotective agent for treating peripheral nerve injuries.