Assessment of VEGF concentration in the wound healing process after neurosurgical procedures – early reports

Introduction: Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), or vascular permeability factor (VPF) or vasculotropin, is considered to be a key factor that regulates physiological and pathological angiogenesis. The role of VEGF in the process of wound healing is not well understood.
Aim: The aim of the study was to assess the VEGF concentration in the blood serum of patients after a neurosurgical procedure, in consecutive measurements before and after the operation.
Material and methods: The study was conducted in the Neurosurgery and Neurotraumatology Department, CM UMK and included 20 adult patients after surgical treatment of degenerative changes in the spine. Each patient’s venous blood samples were obtained three times: before the surgery (measurement 1), on day 1 after surgery (measurement 2) and between the 5th and 6th day after the operation (measurement 3). The samples were sent to the Pathophysiology Department, CM UMK where the VEGF concentration was assessed using the immunoenzymatic method (ELISA). The control group included 20 healthy volunteers similar in age and gender to the patients included in the study.
Conclusions:
1. The study showed no statistically significant differences in the VEGF concentration in blood serum between consecutive measurements before and after the surgery and between the control group and the group of patients included in the study.
2. Further studies should focus on a bigger sample of patients and show correlations between selected wound healing factors and angiogenesis stimulants.