ICH was induced by whole blood (n=24) or collagenase (n=24) injection into the striatum of adult male and female Wistar rats. One-hour sham stimulation (n=16) or nVNS (n=32) was initiated 30 minutes after injection. Spontaneous circling, hindlimb retraction, and grasp ability were tested at 24 hours to measure functional deficit. Rats were euthanized 24 hours or 1 week after injury, and brain tissue was processed for water content analysis (n=24) and histology (n=24), respectively.
Permanent ischemia was induced by filament occlusion of the right middle cerebral artery in adult male Wistar rats (n=18). Sham stimulation or nVNS were initiated 30 minutes after the induction of ischemia and were applied for either 1 hour (sham or nVNS) or 3 hours (nVNS) (n=6 per group). Rats were euthanized 24 hours later to measure infarct volume.