Comparative evaluation of a folkloric plant extract in a rat partial nephrectomy model

To evaluate the efficacy and safety of Ankaferd in comparison with Arista and Surgiflo in a rat zero-ischemia partial nephrectomy model.

A total of 28 Wistar albino rats were randomly assigned to four groups: control, Ankaferd, Arista, and Surgiflo. During partial nephrectomy, both the amount of bleeding and bleeding time were recorded. Intra-abdominal adhesions were evaluated on postoperative day 10. Nephrectomy specimens were harvested for histopathological assessment of tubular and glomerular necrosis, as well as for CD142 immunostaining.

Ankaferd demonstrated superior performance in terms of bleeding amount and bleeding time compared with both Arista and Surgiflo, although the differences did not reach statistical significance. Intra-abdominal adhesion scores were higher in the Ankaferd group than in the Arista and Surgiflo groups, with a statistically significant difference compared with the control group (p = 0.01). Histopathological analysis revealed a significantly higher glomerular necrosis score in the Ankaferd group compared with the control group (p = 0.043), while no significant differences were observed for tubular necrosis or CD142 immunohistochemical evaluation among the study groups.

Ankaferd achieved more effective and rapid hemostasis than Arista and Surgiflo, but its higher adhesion scores limit its reliability for intra-abdominal use.