Fighting Scar Tissue in the OR: New Surgical Gel...

From: Helen Dynda (olddad66@runestone.net)
Thu May 2 19:12:13 2002


Fighting Scar Tissue in the OR: New Surgical Gel Reduces Risk of Adhesions Forming After Gynecologic Surgery

http://www.jnj.com/news_finance/457.htm

Survey shows women unaware that internal scarring can lead to serious complications

Somerville, NJ (February 14, 2002) -- As many as 90 percent of women undergoing gynecologic surgery will develop adhesions or internal scarring, a post-surgery complication that can cause chronic pelvic pain, infertility and small bowel obstruction. Three million procedures are performed each year in the U.S. for common female health problems such as ovarian cysts, fibroids and endometriosis. Yet a recent survey of women who have had gynecologic surgery revealed that two-thirds of them did not discuss the risk of adhesions with their doctor.

Adhesions are abnormal bands of scar tissue that connect organs or tissues that should be separate. Once adhesions develop, the only way to remove them is to have another surgical procedure called adhesiolysis. However, in 80 percent of cases, adhesions will re-form and have to be removed again. That’s why preventing adhesion formation is as critical as treatment.

GYNECARE INTERGEL Adhesion Prevention Solution was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration as an adjunct to good surgical technique to reduce the likelihood of developing moderate or severe postoperative adhesions. The product is indicated for use in some traditional “open” laparotomy procedures, giving doctors a new way to try to prevent this common complication of gynecologic surgery.

“The incidence of adhesions is extremely high and can result in significant health complications for women,” said Melvin Thornton, M.D., associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Columbia University. “The introduction of GYNECARE INTERGEL Solution addresses an important need in gynecologic surgery by providing a safe, effective way to prevent or reduce adhesion formation.”

Women Largely Unaware of the Risk of Adhesions

Despite the alarmingly high prevalence of adhesions, a new survey of 506 women age 18 and older conducted by Opinion Research Corporation/CARAVAN showed that women are largely unaware of adhesions and their associated complications.

The survey found that more than half of the women knew about common female health issues, such as fibroids, endometriosis and ovarian cysts. However, two-thirds were unaware of pelvic adhesions.

Even among those women who said they were familiar with pelvic adhesions, 60 percent did not know that adhesions are among the leading causes of post-operative pelvic pain, infertility and small bowel obstruction. And 75 percent of these women did not know how to reduce their chances of developing pelvic adhesions.

More than one-third of the women surveyed said they had had gynecologic surgery. Two-thirds of these women said that their doctor did not discuss the risk of adhesions with them.

Complications of Adhesions

If measures to prevent adhesion formation are not taken during surgery, complications can be devastating and costly:

* At least one-third of women who suffer from pelvic pain have adhesions.

* Adhesions involving the ovaries or fallopian tubes are responsible for 15-20 percent of female infertility cases because they can block the passage of ovum (egg) and interfere with sperm transport.

* Small bowel obstruction is often a surgical emergency and is particularly common after gynecological surgery.

* Each year, 400,000 adhesiolysis procedures are performed in the U.S., costing the health care system $1.6 billion in hospitalization and surgeon expenses.

Adhesion Prevention with GYNECARE INTERGEL Solution

The use of a barrier to separate tissue surfaces while they heal has been shown to be one of the most effective methods of adhesion prevention. GYNECARE INTERGEL Solution offers surgeons an efficacious and easy-to-use method to help prevent and reduce the risk of adhesion formation. Applied by the surgeon internally during surgery, the gel separates and protects organs and tissues as they heal, thereby blocking adhesion formation. The solution stays in the body for about seven days, the duration of time organs need to heal. The solution is then naturally absorbed and flushed out of the body.

A study published in Fertility and Sterility (September, 2001) found that patients treated with GYNECARE INTERGEL Solution experienced a 59 percent reduction in the American Fertility Society (AFS) score, a classification that measures the severity and extent of adhesions.

GYNECARE INTERGEL Adhesion Prevention Solution is marketed by GYNECARE, the women’s health division of ETHICON, a Johnson & Johnson company. It is manufactured by Lifecore Biomedical. The surgical gel has been used in 25 countries outside the U.S. since 1998. For more information, go to http://www.adhesions.com.

About GYNECARE

GYNECARE, a global health care company, currently offers less invasive options for the treatment of abnormal uterine bleeding, fibroids, adhesions and female urinary incontinence.


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