It is my understanding that adhesions do occur in these areas as well. Heart Adhesions are the second most prominent area of adhesions occuring. Back surgeries cause very problematic adhesions whereas those occuring in the lungs and cardiac areas are not as painful.
Karla
Perhaps Helen D can answer this for me too. In your research, is there any material on why adhesions cause so many problems when the surgery is done in the pelvic area but not with heart surgery, back surgery, transplants. Or do they automatically use the barriers for these types of surgeries?
Thanks Marla
-----Original Message----- From: Sherry Marie <SMGNWV@aol.com> To: Multiple recipients of list ADHESIONS <adhesions@forum.obgyn.net> Date: Thursday, July 06, 2000 7:27 AM Subject: Some interesting statistics...
>Approximately 3 million people who underwent open gynecologic or general
>abdominal surgery in the US in 1995. Between 10 and 15 percent of those
>people will undergo second procedures to remove adhesions. According
>too a 1993 study, $1.2 billion were spent in the US in 1988 to remove
>abdominal adhesions. Up to 93% of abdominal surgery patients have
>adhesions due to previous surgery. Abdominal adhesions are the
>predominate cause of small bowel obstruction, obstruction due to
>adhesion reformation occurred in 11 to 21% of cases. Adhesion formation
>is found at second look in 55 to 100% of patients undergoing
>gynecological surgery. Pelvic adhesions are associated with infertility
>in 15 to 20% of cases. Postoperative adhesions can lead to chronic
>pelvic pain. Over 446,000 procedures were performed in the US to lyse
>abdominopelvic adhesions in 1993. Sounds like a major problem that
>needs addressed to me!!! Sherry Marie
>