Remote and local ischemic preconditioning equivalently protects rat skeletal muscle mitochondrial function during experimental aortic cross-clamping

Acute and chronic ischemia induce mitochondrial dysfunction in human skeletal muscles, and improving muscle mitochondrial function improves subjects' status. Compared with local ischemic preconditioning (IPC), remote IPC (rIPC) appears easier to perform and is safer for the vessel and territory involved in ischemic injury. This study demonstrates that the muscle protection afforded by rIPC is equivalent to that achieved by IPC. Acknowledging that IPC procedures should be specifically adapted to patient characteristics to be successful, our results support a broader use of rIPC in the setting of vascular surgery.