Methylene blue reduces intraabdominal adhesions by decreasing peritoneal oxidative stress and increasing peritoneal fibrinolytic activity

Intraabdominal adhesions are a major complication of abdominal surgery. Studies in this lab have suggested that peritoneal inflammation and oxidative stress may compromise peritoneal fibrinolytic activity and underlie postoperative adhesion formation. Others have shown that methylene blue (MB), a su...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	The FASEB journal Vol. 20; no. 5; p. A1454
Main Authors:	Heydrick, Stanley J, Reed, Karen L, Cohen, Philip A, Aarons, Cary B, Gower, Adam C, Stuchi, Arthur F, Becker, James M
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology 01-03-2006
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Intraabdominal adhesions are a major complication of abdominal surgery. Studies in this lab have suggested that peritoneal inflammation and oxidative stress may compromise peritoneal fibrinolytic activity and underlie postoperative adhesion formation. Others have shown that methylene blue (MB), a superoxide scavenger, reduced adhesion formation although the mechanism(s) are unknown. The aim of this study was to determine whether MB administration affects oxidative stress and fibrinolytic activity in the postoperative peritoneum. Methods Adhesions were surgically induced in rats that received MB (30 mg/ kg) or saline, and quantified at 7 days. Fibrinolytic activity was measured by determining tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) activity in peritoneal fluid collected at 24 hrs. Peritoneal tissue markers of oxidative stress including NADPH oxidase (NOX), myeloperoxidase (MPO), and 8‐isoprostanes (8‐IP) were analyzed at 24 hr and 7 days. Results Compared to non‐operated controls, NOX, MPO, and 8‐IP levels at 24 hrs after surgery were significantly (p≤0.05) increased by 3, 91 and 2.5‐fold, respectively, and remained elevated through 7 days. Administration of MB significantly (p≤0.05) reduced adhesion formation by 60%, 8‐IP levels by 66% and MPO activity by 73% while increasing peritoneal tPA levels by 160%. Conclusion These data support a role for oxidative stress in adhesion formation and suggest that MB may reduce intraabdominal adhesion formation by both decreasing peritoneal oxidative stress and increasing peritoneal fibrinolytic activity.
ISSN:	0892-6638 1530-6860
DOI:	10.1096/fasebj.20.5.A1454-c