Selective COX-2 inhibitor Celecoxib prevents postoperative abdominal adhesion

Objective: To determine the preventive effect of Celecoxib on postoperative adhesion formation and its mechanism. Methods: We divided 80 SD rats into 5 groups: Groups A, B, C, H and S. Rats in Groups A, B, C and H received the operation of peritoneum rubbing to promote adhesion formation. Group S underwent sham operation. Rats in Group B were given Celecoxib of 40 mg/(kg · d), those in Group C were also given Celecoxib of 20 mg/(kg · d), and those in Group H were given sodium hyaluronate (HA) during the operation. On the 8th and 15th postoperative day, half of the rats were sacrificed, the extent of adhesion formation was assessed and the adhesive peritoneum was subjected to immunohistochemistry with VEGF and CD₃₄. Results: The extent of postoperative adhesion differed significantly among the five groups (P<0.01). Groups B and C had significantly fewer adhesions than Groups H and A. VEGF was expressed most highly in Group A, followed by Groups H, C and B, and most weakly in Group S. CD₃₄ was expressed most highly in Group A, followed by Groups H, C and B, and most weakly in Group S. Conclusion: Celecoxib provides durable inhibition of intra-abdominal adhesions in a murine model compared with HA. The mechanism of preventing intra-abdominal adhesion via inhibiting COX-2 is possibly through down-regulated expression of VEGF and reduced microvascular density.