STUDIES OF THE CEREBRAL CORTEX OF RATS FOLLOWING ADMINISTRATION OF TRAMADOL HCL AND MILK

This study investigates the impact of tramadol HCl and processed milk on the cerebral cortex of rats, focusing on changes in body weight and cortical histomorphology. Twenty (20) adult male albino rats were divided into four groups: group i control, group ii 5mg/kg tramadol-only, group iii 10mg/kg processed milk-only, and tramadol + processed milk. Tramadol and processed milk were administered orally for 3 weeks. Body weight was recorded at the beginning and end of the treatment period. Following the treatment period, the cerebral cortex was harvested and examined histologically to assess structural changes. The control, tramadol-only, and processed milk-only groups showed an increase in final body weight compared to the initial weight, while the tramadol + processed milk group did not exhibit significant weight changes. Histological analysis revealed normal histomorphology of the cerebral cortex in the control group. The tramadol-only group displayed mild degeneration, enlarged microcystic spaces, hypertrophied neurons within the cystic spaces, mild intracerebral hemorrhage, and mild inflammatory cell aggregation around hemorrhagic areas. The processed milk-only group showed mild fatty change but otherwise normal cortical features. In the tramadol + processed milk group, mild microcystic spaces were observed, but the overall cortical tissue was better preserved compared to the tramadol-only group, with no significant changes compared to the control group. The study suggests that while tramadol HCl induces mild neurotoxic changes in the cerebral cortex, the co-administration of processed milk may mitigate these effects, resulting in better-preserved cortical tissue. These findings indicate a potential protective role of processed milk against tramadol-induced neurotoxicity.