Strategies to Minimize Adhesion Formation After Surgery

OBJECTIVES: To compare the potential for postoperative laparoscopic adhesion formation utilizing either monopolar cautery or ultrasonic energy and to determine whether there is added benefit with the addition of a suspension of hyaluronate/carboxymethylcellulose in saline versus saline alone. METHODS: Injuries were induced in rabbits by using monopolar cautery on 1 uterine horn and adjacent sidewall and ultrasonic energy on the opposite. Hyaluronate/ carboxymethylcellulose or saline was added to every other animal. Autopsies were performed after 3 weeks. Clinical and pathologic scoring of adhesions was performed by blinded investigators. RESULTS: A very significant difference occurred in pathologic adhesion scores favoring the ultrasonic scalpel when the animals were treated with saline. However, a borderline significant difference was found in pathologic scores favoring the ultrasonic scalpel compared to the monopolar cautery. There was no significant difference in clinical adhesion scores between the 2 modalities. No significant difference in either score was found with the addition of hyaluronate/carboxymethylcellulose or saline with either instrument. CONCLUSION: No benefit was found for adhesion prevention with hyaluronate/carboxymethylcellulose. Although no reduction was achieved in clinical adhesions, the ultrasonic scalpel resulted in fewer histologic signs of tissue inflammation in the early postoperative period, suggesting that further clinical adhesions might develop over time with cautery.