Small bowel transplantation in rats using a venous cuff technique

A venous cuff technique was applied only for venous drainage in orthotopic small bowel transplantation of rats. Rates of technical failure (death within 4 days) and in clinical signs were compared between the groups with (group A) and without (group B) venous cuff technique. Technical failures with and without venous cuff technique were 5% and 25%, respectively. Mean survival days, excluding deaths from technical failure, were 9.2 +/- 2.3 in group A and 8.1 +/- 2.6 days in group B. No significant differences were observed in mean survival days or in weight loss between the two groups. Acute rejection was the cause of death in both groups. Since the model with venous cuff technique showed low mortality, it could be widely employed in small bowel transplantation studies.