Prevention of postoperative air leakage from lungs using a purified human collagen membrane-polyglycolic acid sheet.

BACKGROUND

Human amnion has useful biomedical applications because it contains a large amount of human collagen fibers. We prepared purified human collagen membrane (HCM) from human amnion and used it to develop a new sheet by combining it with synthetic bioabsorbable polyglycolic acid (PGA) mesh. We evaluated its efficacy in preventing air leakage from the lungs of dogs.

METHODS

In 20 dogs, HCM-PGA sheet (n = 5), sheets using fibrin glue with a separate application method (n = 5), a mixed application method (n = 5), and fibrin glue alone (n = 5), were used as dressing materials after partial lung resection.

RESULTS

The HCM-PGA sheet using fibrin glue with a separate application method was shown to be significantly more effective by an air leakage pressure test than the other three methods. These results indicate that the HCM-PGA sheet is useful for preventing air leakage from the lung.

CONCLUSIONS

The HCM-PGA sheet is more effective than conventional fibrin glue for controlling postoperative air leakage.