The effect of ovariectomy on the skin flap viability and myeloperoxidase levels.

OBJECTIVES Estrogen could affect the rate and quality of wound healing in skin. We aimed to investigate the effects of ovariectomy on skin flap viability and myeloperoxidase (MPO) levels in a rat model. BACKGROUND Estrogens have many important beneficial and protective roles in skin that they improve collagen content and quality, maintain skin thickness and enhance vascularization. It has been shown that estrogen supplementation accelerates cutaneous wound healing in elderly patients. METHODS Forty-eight cycling female Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 16); ovariectomy (Group 1), sham (Group 2), and control (Group 3). Rats were subjected to bilateral ovariectomy in the Group 1, and only laparotomy in the Group 2. Twenty-one days later in the Group 1 and 2, a dorsal caudally based skin flap elevation was done. In the Group 3, the rats had a dorsal skin flap without any surgical intervention. Ten days later, the flaps were harvested for histopathologic examination and biochemical analyses. RESULTS The rats in the Group 1 had significantly larger necrotic area and lower flap viability than in the Group 2 and 3 (p<0.05). Histopathologic examination showed that necrotic flap regions contained muscle necrosis with an abundant neutrophil infiltration, and severe edema in the Group 1. The MPO activity in the distal of skin flaps was significantly higher in the Group 1 compared to the Group 2 and 3 (p<0.05). CONCLUSION This study shows that ovariectomy has deleterious effects on skin flap viability in a rat model (Tab. 1, Fig. 6, Ref. 44).