Role of intraperitoneal propolis treatment in preventing postoperative peritoneal adhesions

This study aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties of propolis and its effect on the fibrinolytic system in postoperative adhesions.
The rats were randomly divided into 3 groups of 10, and a modified cecal abrasion model was created. Group 1 was the sham group. Group 2 received 0.4 mL of ethanol (96%), while Group 3 was administered 0.4 mL of propolis (900 mg/kg) and ethanol (96%) solution intraperitoneally. The adhesions were evaluated macroscopically and microscopically. The adhesion in the propolis group was significantly higher according to the scores of Nair (ethanol–propolis P > 0.002 and sham–propolis, P > 0.023) and Zühlke (ethanol–propolis P > 0.033 and sham–propolis P > 0.024). Propolis administration was significantly associated with increased fibrosis (P > 0.01) and vascular proliferation (P > 0.01).
The increase in peritoneal adhesion in the propolis group might have been due to propolis being retained in the abdomen longer than normal and the higher concentration of the solvent.