Ischaemia-reperfusion Injury

This text focuses on the clinical, pathological and biochemical processes involved in ischaemia-reperfusion injury and gives an overview of the strategies that may be adopted to mitigate or prevent such injury.

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Ischaemia-Reperfusion Injury is concerned with the consequences of interrupting and restoring blood flow to tissues. Many common clinical conditions are caused by interruption of blood flow to tissues (e. g. ischaemic heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, stroke); blood flow is also interruped deliberately in many surgical procedures (e. g. cardiac surgery, arterial surgery, transplant surgery, limb surgery with tourniquet). In treating such conditions or after performing such operations the aim of the clinician is to restore the blood supply to the ischaemic tissue. Paradoxically restoration of blood flow to ischaemic tissues can lead to further damage with the potential for severe local systemic injury. This book focuses on the clinical, pathological and biochemical processes involved in ischaemia-reperfusion injury and gives an overview of the strategies that may be adopted to mitigate or prevent such injury. It is unique that it is written by clinicians who have to deal with the problem of ischaemia-reperfusion in their patients, and by scientists who have studied and dissected in detail the underlying mechanisms.
It, therefore, gives the first comprehensive overview of the problems incurred and will be of interest to general, transplant and vascular surgeons, and pathologists and researchers with an interest in ischaemia-reperfusion injury.