The effects of hyperbaric oxygen therapy on colonic anastomosis in rats with peritonitis

The aim of this study is to investigate the healing effect of hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) on colonic anastomoses in the presence of experimentally induced peritonitis. Thirty-two rats were allocated randomly into short-term anastomosis (STA), short-term anastomosis + HBO treatment (STA+HBO), long-term anastomosis (LTA), and long-term anastomosis + HBO (LTA+HBO) treatment groups. The STA and LTA groups were administered fluid resuscitation and antibiotics for 3 and 7 days, respectively, whereas the HBO treatment groups received additional HBO therapy for 3 and 7 days, respectively. The rats were reoperated on the third and the seventh days of anostomoses for evaluation. The bursting pressures in STA+HBO and LTA+HBO therapy groups were significantly higher than those in groups with anastomoses alone (p < .001 and p < .01). HBO therapy did not affect the fibrotic index neither in STA nor in LTA groups (p > .05 for both); however, it was significantly higher in LTA+HBO group than that in STA+HBO group (p < .05). The hydroxyproline level was significantly higher in LTA group than in STA group (p < .05), yet HBO therapy did not affect the hydroxyproline levels in STA or LTA groups (p > .05 for both). It is concluded that hyperbaric oxygen treatment has positive effects on colonic anastomotic healing in case of peritonitis.