Effect of Sub-acute Administration of Lead Acetate on Blood Pressure, Pulse Rate and Histology of the Heart in Wistar Rat.

Abstract

This study was carried out to determine the effects of sub-acute administration of lead acetate on the cardiovascular system and rat heart histology. Sixteen male Wister rats were used for the study which were weighed and grouped after acclimatization into two groups; group A: control group and group B: Experimental group. Rats in group B were given 10mg/ml of lead acetate every day for 28 days. Their weight, blood pressure, pulse rate and heart weight were measured and their hearts prepared for histopathological analysis. The results showed that the weights of the rats increased. Although the increase was more in control than in the lead-treated group, the P-value showed that there was no significant difference at P=0.05. There was an increase in systolic blood pressure in the lead group as compared to control. The mean systolic pressure in the lead treated group was not significantly different from the diastolic blood pressure and pulse rate. From the histopathological analysis, it was shown that 100% of the control rats had normal heart muscles while in the lead-treated group 90% had normal heart muscles and 10% had inflammation of the heart muscles. From the studies, it is shown that sub-acute administration of lead acetate has little or no effect on rat heart histology but could elevate systolic blood pressure.