COMPLICATIONS

Complications arising from omental patch placement or omental pedicle grafting are rare and fairly inconsequential. The most common complication is partial necrosis of the omentum, which is usually the result of excessive tension or strangulation of a pedicle.^2,4 Excessive or improper handling of the omentum during surgery may also lead to desiccation. Desiccation can be prevented by frequently moistening the omentum during the procedure or by keeping it wrapped in saline-soaked laparotomy pads. Intestinal entrapment by omental adhesions or tears can cause strangulation or torsion of the bowel in animals that have not undergone omentalization; a similar problem could occur after omental patch placement.^14,15 We know of two animals that developed intestinal obstruction after omentum, which had been wrapped 360 degrees around their intestines, hypertrophied. Consequently, encircling the intestines with a single flap of omentum is not recommended.

Erik Anderson, BS
Karen M. Tobias, DVM, MS, DACVS
Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences
College of Veterinary Medicine
The University of Tennessee
Knoxville, TN 37996-4544

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13. Evans HE, deLahunta A, Miller ME. Guide to the dissection of the dog. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: WB Saunders Co, 2000;201-202.

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15. Hosgood G, Bunge M, Dorfman M. Jejunal incarceration by an omental tear in a dog. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1992;200:947-950.