Extracorporeal circulation increases proliferation in the intestinal mucosa in a large animal model

This study investigated the effect of extracorporeal circulation (ECC) with distal aortic perfusion or selective visceral perfusion on intestinal mucosal proliferation and apoptosis in a porcine model. Our results demonstrate that the mucosal apoptosis is moved into an advanced state due to the surgical trauma. The mucosal proliferation increases after distal aortic perfusion as an early repair mechanism of the ECC-induced ischemia/reperfusion injury of the intestine. Our study is important for the better understanding of the pathophysiology of ECC-related intestinal ischemia/reperfusion injury. In addition, it is of interest for the improvement of extracorporeal perfusion techniques during complex vascular surgical procedures.