Effects of cooling and intraluminally administered antiseptics on surgically induced ischemia of the intestine in dogs.

The efficacy of surface cooling and intraluminal antiseptic solutions for short term preservation of intestinal segments in preparation for free tissue transfer were investigated. Five segments of the small intestine and five segments of the colon were allocated to each group as follows: group 1, ischemia at 37 degrees C.; group 2, ischemia at 6 to 12 degrees C., and group 3, ischemia at 6 to 12 degrees C. plus povidone-iodine intraluminally. Histologic grading of segments allowed assessment of the efficacy of short term protection against ischemic changes. Surface cooling effectively prevented histologic evidence of ischemia. No additional benefit was observed using povidone-iodine intraluminally. Significant changes in tissue water content and evidence of bacterial invasion were not observed.