The action of amniotic fluid on the serous membranes

The frequent formation of fibrous adhesions between the serous sheets of the peritoneum after operations forces many surgeons to look for means to prevent this undesirable and sometimes very serious and dangerous consequence of surgical interventions for diseases of the abdominal organs. Recently Johnson, on the basis of the alleged property of amniotic fluid to prevent the adhesion of the fetus to the amniotic sac, proposed its use as a means of preventing the formation of postoperative adhesions between the sheets of the peritoneum. Warren (Arch. Of Path. A. Lab. Med., Vol. 6, No. 5, 1928 and Amer. Journ. Path. No. 6 Vol. IV, 1928) tried to experimentally substantiate this proposal, (for this, during laparotomy in marine pigs, he produced a fairly strong mechanical damage to the sheets of the peritoneum, then to one group of animals he injected into the cavity of the peritoneum from 10 to 15 kb of sterile amniotic fluid, and some animals served as control. , in almost half of the cases, a complete prevention of the formation of adhesions was achieved, in others, a significant decrease in the number of adhesions was obtained. -first, the property of amniotic fluid to significantly reduce the duration of bleeding from wound surfaces, which eliminates the formation of large amounts of fibrin that the organ can undergo izatsii; secondly, due to the slow absorption of amniotic fluid from the abdominal cavity, it serves as a lubricant that maintains the slipperiness of serous surfaces. The author used the so-called. concentrated human and cow amniotic fluid, obtained after treating the fluid with alcohol to remove some of the proteins from it. Based on his data, the author recommends always using amniotic fluid where they want to avoid the formation of adhesions between the sheets of the peritoneum. Moreover, further research gives Warren's reason to recommend the use of amniotic fluid for the same purpose in operations on other serous cavities (pleura, heart, joints).