EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES ON INTESTINAL ABSORPTION BY THE ARTIFICIAL AIR PNEUMOPERITONEUM

Abstract

The author has already reported on the results obtained from clinical cases concerning the manner of absorption from intestinal tract by the injection of air into abdominal cavity. This time he reported on the absorption from the intestinal tract of normal rabbit by normopressure and highpressure pneumoperitoneum (using air) performed for a short and long period respectively.
As a method of experiment, using normal rabbit 0.25% phenolsulfonphthalein solution was administered parenteral (into auricular vein) and peroral, and a rate of total amount excreted into urine was calculated for each route of administration and a percentage of these rate was determined as a percentage of absorption from intestinal tract. Moreover, each experiment was commenced directly after each refilling. The average percentage of absorption obtained from the control group was 70.72%. The transition of the percentage of absorption by the short period normopressure pneumoperitoneum, surve-yed at each procedure from the first to the tenth refilling resumed value equal to that prior to the injection of air. The average percentage of absorption for the long period normopressure pneumoperitoneum group was 68.97%, revealing little difference between the control group. The average percentage of absorption for the temporary highpressure pneumoperitoneum group was 56.90%, showing apparent low value compared with the above mentioned results. The average percentage of absorption for the long period high-pressure pneumoperitoneum group was 56.77%, and this value showed close resemblance to that of the former. Judging from these results, especially from the fact that the hinderance of absorption function was of the same degree for the temporary and long period high-pressure pneumoperitoneum, the author assumed that the absorption function was hindered from the disorder in the portal circulation produced by the excessive elevation of intraab-dominal pressure due to injection of air. (author's excerpt)