The effects of R-68070 were studied in a well-characterized model of drum-induced traumatic shock in rats. R-68070 is a combination thromboxane A2 (TxA2) synthetase inhibitor-TxA2 receptor antagonist. Pentobarbital-anesthetized (50 mg/kg) rats subjected to Noble-Collip drum trauma developed a lethal circulatory shock state characterized by a marked decrease in mean arterial blood pressure (MABP) to about 75 mmHg, resulting in a survival time of 1.58 +/- 0.18 h. This compares with MABP of 120 +/- 4 mmHg 5 h after anesthetization in rats subjected to a sham traumatic shock protocol. Administration of R-68070 (1.5 mg/kg) significantly attenuated the plasma accumulation of the lysosomal protease, cathepsin D (p less than 0.05), as well as free amino-nitrogen concentration (p less than 0.05) and myocardial depressant factor activity (p less than 0.02). Additionally, R-68070 significantly prolonged survival time to 2.85 +/- 0.48 h (p less than 0.015) compared with traumatized rats given only the vehicle. These results suggest that TxA2 may be an important mediator in traumatic shock, and that R-68070 may prove to be a useful therapeutic agent in this situation if given early in the course of the shock state.