Efficacy of fibrin glue therapy for abscess-associated enteric fistulas

Abdominal abscess that result from bowel injury may require treatment with percutaneous drainage. In some cases, an abscess-associated fistula develops between the injured bowel and the drainage catheter. Fistulas that fail to resolve may require surgery; however, fibrin glue therapy (FGT) may be a suitable alternative.

We retrospectively identified patients undergoing FGT for an abscess-associated enteric fistula between 2004 and 2015. Success was defined as closure of the fistula tract without need for additional intervention. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was utilized to identify factors associated with success.

We identified 34 patients with a median age of 54 (23-87) years and 24 (71 %) males. FGT was successful in 23 (67 %) patients. On multivariate analysis, a tract width less than 5 mm (OR 19.2, 95 % CI 1.7-214.5) and removal of the drain (OR 13.8, 95 % CI 1.2-157.6) predicted FGT success. The time from initial FGT to resolution was significantly decreased for the patients who were successfully treated compared to those who failed 24 (14-38) days vs. 99 (71-175) days, respectively (p < 0.001).

Fibrin glue therapy for abscess-associated enteric fistula results in successful and accelerated healing in the majority of cases. Factors associated with successful fibrin glue therapy were identified.