• Otmar R Buyne, Robert P Bleichrodt, Harry van Goor, Paul E Verweij, and Thijs Hendriks.
• Department of Surgery, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, P.O. Box 91091, 6500, HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
• Int J Colorectal Dis. 2007 Jul 1;22(7):819-25.

BackgroundOptimal therapy of secondary peritonitis frequently results in the formation of residual abscesses, which bear a substantial mortality and morbidity. This study aims to prove that fibrinolytic therapy with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) can reduce abscess formation after surgical treatment of secondary peritonitis in a rat model, without causing unwanted side effects.Materials And MethodsMale Wistar rats received an intra-abdominal injection with a suspension of sterile feces, 10(5) cfu Escherichia coli and 10(4) cfu Bacteroides fragilis. Surgical debridement was performed 1 h after inoculation. Animals were randomized into four groups (n = 14 each). Three groups received human rtPA at 1 h (rtPA1); 1 h and 6 h (rtPA2); and 1, 6, and 24 h (rtPA3), respectively. Each dose contained 1.25 mg rtPA. Controls received saline only. Animals were killed after 5 days.ResultsrtPA treatment reduced abscess formation in surviving animals, depending on number of doses given. Animals in group rtPA3 had no abscesses in contrast to 88% of the controls (mean 3.6 +/- 2.7 abscesses per rat; p < 0.05). In the rtPA1 and rtPA2 group, frequency of abscess formation was 58 and 33%, respectively. Mortality, course of body weight, and bacteremia were not affected by rtPA and neither were peritoneal cell counts and levels of TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-6 and IL-10. No bleeding complications were observed.ConclusionrtPA reduces intra-abdominal abscess formation after surgical treatment of generalized peritonitis without increasing mortality or affecting the local inflammatory response.

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