Treatment with chlorhexidine modifies the healing of colon anastomosis in rats.

Abstract

PURPOSE: To investigate the effects of chlorhexidine on the healing of colon anastomosis in the presence of peritonitis. METHODS: Peritonitis was induced in male Wistar rats by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). The abdominal cavities of experimental animals were irrigated with warm solutions containing 0.9% saline (SAL group; n = 8) or 0.05% chlorhexidine (CHD group; n = 8), following which colon anastomosis was performed. Rats of the control group (n = 8) were submitted to colon anastomosis but not to CLP. Animals were euthanized seven days after surgery, and healing was assessed by histopathological examination and by measuring anastomotic burst pressure. RESULTS: Post-operative survival rates were 100, 87.5 and 75% for the control, SAL, and CHD groups, respectively. The degree of inflammation was significantly lower (ρ = 0.01) in the CHD group compared with the other groups, whilst the anastomotic burst pressure within the CHD group (156.7 ± 53.2 mmHg) was lower than, but not significantly different from, those of the control and SAL groups (196.3 ± 49.8, 208.6 ± 72.7 mmHg, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Peritoneal irrigation with chlorhexidine solution is effective in the control of inflammation promoted by peritonitis but does not improve healing of colon anastomosis in rats.