The effects of bevacizumab on intestinal anastomotic healing in rabbits

Abstract

Purposes: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of the preoperative administration of BV on the healing process of intestinal anastomosis in a rabbit model.

Methods: Twenty male white rabbits were randomly divided into two groups. The control group received saline 1 week before surgery, and the BV group received intravenous BV 1 week before surgery. Each rabbit underwent an enteroenterostomy and a colocolostomy. On postoperative day 7, the bursting pressures of the anastomoses, CD31 and α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) staining by immunohistochemistry, the gene expression of α-SMA, and collagen deposition using Picrosirius Red at the site of anastomosis were evaluated.

Results: The bursting pressure of small bowel anastomoses was significantly lower in the BV group than in the control group (control 184 ± 10 mmHg vs. BV 140 ± 9 mmHg; p = 0.004). The microvessel counts in the anastomotic tissue were significantly lower in the BV group than in the control group in both the small bowel (p = 0.023) and colon (p = 0.008). The expression of α-SMA, and the degree of collagen deposition decreased in the anastomotic tissue in the BV group compared with the control group.

Conclusion: The preoperative use of BV may therefore negatively affect the rigidity of intestinal anastomosis.

Keywords: Anastomotic leakage; Angiogenesis; Bevacizumab; Intestinal anastomotic healing; α-Smooth muscle actin.