Differential Effects of Surgical Suture Materials in 1,2-Dimethylhydrazine- induced Rat Intestinal Neoplasia1

The incidence, distribution, size, and histopathology of rat small and large bowel tumors induced by sequential administra tion of 1,2-dimethylhydrazine followed by cecal placement of one of six differing types of suture materials were systematically examined. In addition, measurements of /3-glucuronidase activi ties in large bowel contents followed by fecal trace metal deter minations were done. The results indicate that specific slowly absorbed and nonabsorbable suture materials in the absence of a surgical anastomosis promote tumor induction locally in the rat cecum. In addition, cecal suture material composed of multifilament stainless steel wire enhanced tumor development at a "downstream" site in the distal colon, paralleling increased fecal /3-glucuronidase activities at this site and implicating a possible luminally mediated mechanism for colon tumor development in this animal model.