Effect of oral d-penicillamine vs. colchicine on experimentally induced peritoneal adhesions in rats

Objective: To evaluate the effects of d-penicillamine on prevention or reduction of adhesion band formation and to compare its effects with those of colchicine in an animal model. Design: A prospective experimental study. Setting: Rats in an academic research environment. Animal(s): Eighty female rats were randomly divided into four equal groups. In the end, group 4 was excluded because of high mortality rates. Intervention(s): Adhesion bands were induced by intraperitoneal injection of 2.5 mL of a 10% sterile talc solution. The first group served as control, group 2 received oral d-penicillamine (35 mg/kg per day), group 3 received oral colchicines (0.02 mg/kg per day), and group 4 received both drugs for 3 consecutive weeks. Main Outcome Measure(s): Formation of adhesion bands was quantitatively graded according to the Nair classification. Result(s): The proportion of control rats with substantial adhesion bands was significantly higher than that of rats in groups 2 or 3 (84.2%, 20%, and 33.3%). No difference regarding the grades of adhesion bands was found between the d-penicillamine and colchicine groups. Conclusion(s): Oral d-penicillamine is as effective as oral colchicine in prevention of peritoneal adhesion band formation in rats. Use of d-penicillamine for this purpose should be weighed against its possible side effects.