[The cause of complications of abdominal incision healing after cesarean section in cattle].

Based on a case analysis of patients with caesarean section (n = 252) performed at the Clinic for Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Cattle of the Veterinary School of Hannover, it was the aim of the following study to make a contribution to the aetiology of wound complications following caesarean section. Wound complications were classified as mild, moderate or severe according to the following criteria: mild: slight swelling in the area of the wound (wound edema or slight phlegmon), especially in the ventral corner; healing without therapy (n = 17 [6.7%]), moderate: seroma and moderate phlegmon; wound healing after conservative treatment with hyperemizing ointments (n = 16 [6.3%]), severe: secondary wound healing after lancing of the abscess, rinsing with acridine colour solution and hydrogen peroxide solution plus drainage with iodoform gauze (n = 23 [9.1%]). The following factors had a significant effect on the healing process: duration of parturition (18% and 37.7% wound complications in animal with normal and prolonged labor, respectively); macroscopic condition of the allantoic and/or amniotic fluid (19.7% and 47.8% wound complications in animals with normal and pathologic allantoic and/or amniotic fluid; respectively); degree of the exposure of the uterus outside the laparotomy wound (13.4% and 51.7% wound complications in cases with complete exposure of the uterus [i.e. complete exposure of the pregnant horn with one limb of the fetus, e.g. in anterior position, from hock joint to the claws] and incomplete or no exposure of the uterus, respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)