Do barbiturates impair zymosan-induced granulocyte function?
PURPOSE: The dose-response relationship of commercially available preparations of methohexital, pentobarbital, phenobarbital, and thiopental and their respective drug-free solutions on granulocyte function was investigated to evaluate whether suppression of neutrophil chemiluminescence is mediated by the barbiturates themselves or by their drug-free solutions. Furthermore, it was assessed whether suppression of chemiluminescence is due to an interaction mainly with neutrophils or to free radical scavenging. METHODS: The dose-response effects of the four barbiturates on granulocyte function were tested by zymosan-induced neutrophil chemiluminescence and, in addition, in a cell-free chemiluminescence system. RESULTS: Methohexital and pentobarbital did not influence zymosan-induced neutrophil chemiluminescence, whereas phenobarbital and thiopental decreased neutrophil chemiluminescence in a dose-dependent fashion. Nonphysiological osmolality (531 mosmol/kg) caused this impaired neutrophil
