BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a serious lung disease that severely threatens people’s health. This study aimed to investigate the effects of heliox-driven nebulization (HDN) on lung function and arterial blood gases in a COPD rat model.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twelve healthy male Wistar rats were selected as controls and 34 rats were used to establish a COPD model induced by lipopolysaccharide. Then 6 rats each from the control and model groups were selected for their symptoms to be observed. The remaining 6 normal rats were used as control group (group A) and the remaining 28 experimental COPD rats were randomly assigned to 4 groups: experimental COPD group (group B), medical oxygen group (group C), and heliox groups (group D, He/O2=63%/37%; group E, He/O2=71%/29%). The lung function indicators and arterial blood gases were analyzed to evaluate the effects of different driving gases on COPD rats.

RESULTS: The COPD model was successfully established with slow growth and severe lung dysfunction. Inspiratory resistance, expiratory resistance, and forced expiratory volume at 0.10 s (FEV0.10)/FVC were significantly decreased, whereas dynamic lung compliance was significantly increased in groups D and E, compared with the experimental COPD group (group B; P<0.05). Meanwhile, compared with the model group, the values of partial pressure of carbon dioxide in arterial blood were significantly higher, whereas the potential of hydrogen values were significantly lower after atomization in groups C and D but not in group E (P<0.05). The obvious increase in arterial oxygen saturation was found only in group E (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: HDN improved the lung function and arterial blood gas analysis results in experimental COPD rats, with an optimal percentage of He/O2=71%/29%.

Keywords: Forced Expiratory Volume, Helium - administration & dosage, Lung - physiopathology, Nebulizers and Vaporizers, Oxygen - blood, Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive - therapy, Random Allocation, Rats, Wistar, Respiratory Function Tests