Effect of autologous omental free graft on wound healing process in experimental cervical oesophagus incision in dog: short-term preliminary histopathological study

This study was designed to evaluate the role of free autologous greater omentum graft in enhancing the healing process in cervical oesophagus surgical wounds. The study was carried out on eight male adult dogs, assigned equally into either an experimental or control group. All dogs underwent cervical oesophagotomy and laparotomy operations simultaneously. A 3-cm linear full thickness incision was made on the cervical oesophagus and then sutured. A small piece of omentum was obtained from the abdominal cavity and secured on the oesophageal suture line in the experiment group. In the control group, the suture line was left without a graft and the isolated omentum disposed. During this study, the dogs were examined clinically and euthanized on day 14. The surgical site on the oesophagus was assessed macroscopically, and then histopathologic samples were taken from the repaired tissue of the oesophageal wall. The samples were stained by haematoxylin–eosin and Masson’s trichrome. The results demonstrated that there were no significant differences based on clinical and macroscopic examination between the two groups. The microscopic study revealed that cellularity, angiogenesis and granulation tissue formation in the wound bed in the experimental group was significantly more than in the control group. The application of autologous free omental graft can influence cervical oesophagus wound healing through augmentation of angiogenesis, cell infiltration and granulation tissue formation.