Comparison of three suture techniques for anastomosis of the small intestine in the horse.

This research compares three different surgical suture techniques by assessing their effectiveness after 30 days in seven horses, and found that no significant difference in percentage reduction of lumen diameters between the three techniques, and there was also no evidence of chronic obstruction resulting from any of the techniques.

Research Methodology

• Seven horses were used to conduct this research. The researchers compared three suture techniques for the anastomosis of the small intestine in these horses.
• The three techniques compared included the Gambee, the crushing, and a 2-layer inverting suture pattern made up of a simple continuous layer in the mucosa overlaid with a continuous Lembert pattern in the seromuscular layer.

Post-Surgery Evaluations

• The horses were evaluated 30 days after being administered the surgical techniques. The assessments checked for adhesion formation, lumen diameter, and quality of healing at the anastomotic sites.
• One horse had to be euthanized after 9 days after surgery due to complications such as septic peritonitis and widespread adhesions.
• One of the horses had no adhesions. The rest of the horses, however, showed adhesions that were associated with 50% of the Gambee and 50% of the crushing anastomoses.
• The 2-layer inverting techniques did not cause any adhesions in the six remainig horses.

Outcomes of the Study

• There was no significant difference in percentage reduction of lumen diameters between the three surgical techniques.
• The surgical techniques did not result in any chronic obstruction.
• Upon histological examination, the single layer patterns showed minimal inflammatory response and fibrosis. However, in the 2-layer inverting technique, there was an increase in fibrosis and inflammation along the suture tract.