Wound healing of the pelvis following abdominoperineal rectum extirpation. A comparison of 2 drainage procedures in a prospective randomized study

In a prospectively randomized study we used two different ways of drainage of the sacral space after an abdomino-perineal-resection of the rectum. One group with 25 patients had a drainage anteriorly through the abdominal wall, the other 25 patients got a drainage posteriorly through the buttocks. In each case we used two closed silicone-drainage-systems without active suction. In 60% of the anterior and in 50% of the posterior drained cases we saw an unaffected primary healing of the sacral wound. There was no significant difference. The patients felt the anterior way of drainage to be more convenient. Contamination of the sacral space by disrupture of the rectum during the operation was followed by a sacral abscess in 50%.