BACKGROUND: Haemorrhage remains a major cause of morbidity and death in all surgical specialties. The aim of this study was to analyse the feasibility of PuraStat®, a new synthetic haemostatic device, made of self-assembling peptides in laparoscopic colorectal surgery.
METHODS: This was a prospective observational non-randomised study. Consecutive patients undergoing laparoscopic colorectal surgery were enrolled. Inclusion criterion was the need employ a secondary method of haemostasis when traditional methods such as conventional pressure or utilization of energy devices to control the bleeding were either insufficient or not recommended.
RESULTS: Twenty patients were enrolled. The mean time to apply the product was 40 secs (±17 secs), whereas the mean time to achieve haemostasis was 17.5 secs (±3.5 secs). There were no post-operative complications in this cohort of 20 patients. Mean operative time overall was 185 mins (±45.2 mins). None of the patients experienced delayed post-operative bleeding and the mean hospital stay was five days (±3,4).
CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrated that PuraStat® can be easily used in laparoscopic surgery and it is a safe, effective haemostatic agent. This is a feasibility study and additional controlled studies would be useful in the future.