The effect of ozonated water and ozone application on intraperitoneal infection in rats with fecal peritonitis: an experimental study

Uçak, M. The Effect of Ozonated Water and Ozone Application on Intraperitoneal Infection in Rats with Fecal Peritonitis: An Experimental Study. Van Yüzüncü Yıl University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of General Surgery, Van, 2024. Fecal peritonitis is a serious type of infection that develops as a result of gastrointestinal perforations and has a high mortality rate. Ozone therapy is being investigated as an adjunctive treatment method in the treatment of infections due to its antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of ozonated water and ozone application on the treatment of intraperitoneal infection in rats with fecal peritonitis. 40 Wistar albino rats were used in the study and 5 groups were created: control, antibiotic, antibiotic+ozonated water, ozonated water and ozone. Fecal peritonitis was induced by injection of cecal contents. Group-specific treatments were applied for 7 days. Rats were observed throughout the experiment, blood and peritoneal samples were taken at the 24th hour and on the 7th day, and hematological, microbiological and histopathological analyzes were performed. Mann Whitney U test, Kruskal Wallis H Test and Pearson Chi-square test were performed with the data obtained as a result of the analysis. According to hematological findings, the MCH level in the ozonated water group was found to be significantly higher than the antibiotic and ozone groups. MCHC levels was found to be significantly lower in the antibiotic group than in all other groups. The ratio of lymphocytes in the ozone group was found to be significantly higher than the ozonated water and antibiotic groups. No significant difference was observed between groups in microbiological findings. According to histopathological findings, inflammation scores in the control group were significantly higher than the treatment groups. In conclusion, ozone and ozonated water treatments were shown to have positive effects on the peritonitis model. Ozone therapy may have a protective effect against infection by stimulating the immune system and reducing inflammation, and ozonated water may have a protective effect against infection by supporting erythrocyte functions. It would be useful to investigate the effectiveness of ozone and ozonated water treatments with larger samples, longer treatment protocols and more comprehensive infection indicators in future studies.