Prenatal ultrasound heating impacts on fluctuations in haematological analysis of Oryctolagus cuniculus

Evaluation of the thermal effects of prenatal ultrasound on hematological analysis of young Oryctolagus Cuniculus

Elevated temperatures can induce changes in red blood cell (RBC), white blood cell (WBC) and platelet (PLT) counts. Ultrasound heating during obstetric scans has the potential to increase body temperature owing to the phenomenon of absorption. We conducted a study to determine the thermal effects of prenatal ultrasound on RBCs, hemoglobin concentration (Hb), WBCs and PLTs in young rabbits. We selected 69 rabbits that were 1 month of age and 73 that were 5 months of age, and allocated them to four groups. The control group consisted of four pregnant does that were allowed to have a full term delivery without any ultrasound exposure. The experimental groups were subjected to one-time ultrasound exposure for 30, 60 and 90 min in the middle of each gestational stage accordingly. RBCs and Hb showed significant reductions in the experimental groups of 1- and 5-month-old rabbits (P<0.05). In addition, WBCs and PLTs yielded significant differences in the 1-month group that were not observed in the 5-month group (P>0.05). The highest values recorded were those of the WBCs of 1-month-old subjects that received 90 min of exposure at the second stage of gestation. The PLTs were the lowest values recorded in 1-month-old subjects following 90 min of ultrasound exposure at the third stage of gestation. These findings suggest that hematological fluctuations during the early stages of postnatal life persisted until 1 month of age and recovered thereafter, as the subjects progressed into adulthood. Therefore, ultrasound heating can cause significant, yet reversible effects on the hematological parameters of rabbits.

Effects of Low-Intensity Continuous Ultrasound on Hematological Parameters of Rats

BACKGROUND

Low intensity ultrasound (US) has some well-known bio-effects which are of great importance to be considered. Objective: We conducted the present study to investigate the effects of low intensity continuous ultrasound on blood cells count in rat.

METHODS

Rats were anesthetized and blood samples were collected before US exposure. Then, they were exposed to US with nominal intensity of 0.2 W/cm2 at frequency of 3 MHz for a period of 10 minutes and this protocol was repeated for 7 days. Twenty four hours after the last US exposure, secondary blood samples were collected and the changes in blood parameters were evaluated.

RESULTS

Analysis revealed that platelets, hematocrit (HCT) and hemoglobin (HGB) were significantly different between experimental and sham groups but no difference between sham and control groups was observed. The results show that HCT and HGB of exposed rats were significantly reduced. Conclusion: This study shows that low intensity US may lead to side effects for hematological parameters such as reduction in the levels of HGB and HCT.