An experimental study evaluating the effect of mitomycin C on the prevention of postoperative intraabdominal adhesions

Background. Fibroblast proliferation is one of the well-known mechanisms for postoperative intraabdominal adhesion formation. Inhibition of fibroblast proliferation is an attractive field of investigation in the prevention of adhesions. Mitomycin C (MMC) is a cytotoxic agent that alkylates and crosslinks DNA and also inhibits fibroblast proliferation up to a few weeks. We aimed to determine the effect of MMC on the prevention of adhesions. Materials and methods. Generation of adhesions in rats by brushing a 1-cm(2) area of the cecum and the peritoneum on the right side of the abdominal wall was followed by intraperitoneal administration of saline, 1 mg/kg MMC, and 0.5 mg/kg MMC in saline. After 45 days, formation of adhesions was graded. Results. The average adhesion scores of the control, and MMC (1 mg/kg), MMC (0.5 mg/kg) groups were 3.2 +/- 0.7, 0.8 +/- 0.6, and 0.7 +/- 0.8, respectively. Adhesion scores of the two MMC-treated groups were significantly lower than that of the control group (P < 0.001). There was no difference between the two MMC groups (P > 0.05). No side effect of MMC was observed. Conclusion. MMC was found to be very effective in the prevention of postoperative intraabdominal adhesions. (C) 2001 Academic Press.