Abdominal cocoon: an animal model for a complication of peritoneal dialysis.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this work was to develop an animal model of sclerosing encapsulating peritonitis, a complication of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis in which the intestines are conglomerated into an ovoid cocoonlike structure.


METHODS
Toward this end, rats were injected with a chemical irritant (household bleach) intraperitoneally. One week later, before the resultant peritonitis could cause adhesions, 10 or 25 mL of fresh whole rat blood was injected into the peritoneal cavity. Two weeks later, the effect of the treatments was evaluated by macroscopic and microscopic study.


RESULTS
The irritant caused a chemical peritonitis. The subsequently injected blood clotted on the surfaces of the inflamed intestines, and contraction of the clot (syneresis) was responsible for bringing the intestinal loops together. This conglomeration was made permanent by the fibrosis evoked by the chemical peritonitis. The end result was an ovoid encapsulated mass of intestines and other viscera.


CONCLUSIONS
An animal model for an abdominal cocoon has been produced. It can be used for studies of the pathogenesis and prevention of this complication of peritoneal dialysis.
Levine
S
S
Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, Orangeburg, New York 10962, USA.
Saltzman
A
A
D000818:Animals; D001769:Blood; D005260:Female; D007422:Intestines / Q000473:pathology; D007509:Irritants; D008297:Male; D010531:Peritoneal Dialysis, Continuous Ambulatory / Q000009:adverse effects*; D010538:Peritonitis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D000267:Tissue Adhesions
D007509:Irritants