An experimental model of intraabdominal abscess in the rat.
Suitable small animal models of intraabdominal abscess are not available. We have developed a reliable model of intraabdominal abscess in the rat by fasting the animal overnight, devascularizing and ligating the cecum, and injecting 2.5 X 10(8) Escherichia coli and 2.5 X 10(9) Bacteroides fragilis into the ligated cecum. This model results in 39% coli acute mortalities within 48 hours from acute peritonitis, and abscess in 76% of survivals. Subsequent abscesses are 1.0--1.5 ml in volume and contain 4 X 10(8) E coli/ml of pus and 1.4 X 10(9) B fragilis/ml. This model allows chronic evaluation of sepsis in small animals and provides a convenient means to study the abscess microenvironment.
D000005:Abdomen; D000038:Abscess / Q000209:etiology*; D000818:Animals; D001442:Bacteroides Infections / Q000209:etiology; D001441:Bacteroides fragilis / Q000472:pathogenicity; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004927:Escherichia coli Infections / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D010538:Peritonitis / Q000150:complications; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains