Abstract
Specially treated bone was used to close the intestinal loop previously described. 1 Experience has shown that it is difficult to obtain uniform preparations of bone which will not eventually disintegrate after an exposure of some months to the action of intestinal juices. This difficulty has been overcome by substituting stainless steel wire mesh for bone. A 3/4 inch width of 30 mesh stainless steel wire mesh∗ is wound around the rubber tubing until the desired thickness of “bone” is obtained. The rough ends are closed by vulcanizing rubber onto them, which thus fastens the wire to the tubing. A porous matrix through which the serosa can grow is thus established. Loops closed in this manner are intact after 6 months of use, and show no sign of leakage or disintegration. Vitalium wire mesh was also satisfactory but costs several times as much as stainless steel.
One other troublesome factor, that of the inserted end of the rubber tubing puncturing the walls of the loop, has been eliminated. A roll of rubber was vulcanized around the end of the tubing which was inserted into the loop at the time of operation, thus eliminating sharp edges of hard rubber. No punctures have occurred since this practice was begun.
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