Pleural defect repair with an overlapping method using fibrin glue-coated collagen fleece.

Purpose: Collagen fleece coated with fibrin glue (TachoComb; CSL Behring, Tokyo, Japan) is a tissue adhesive and sealant used to stop hemorrhage and air leakage. We assessed the efficacy of overlapping methods combined with the use of TachoComb to repair pleural defects.

Methods: Using a beagle animal model, circular and square defects were created on the pulmonary pleura and then repaired with TachoComb patches of varying minimum overlap widths (MOW). The airway pressure at which air leakage from the repaired region occurred (bursting pressure) was measured in a water sealing test. The ability of TachoComb to withstand temporal changes was assessed by repairing a 6-mm circular defect. The bursting pressure was measured at 5 min, 10 min, 3 h, and 24 h after the repair.

Results: TachoComb patches with an MOW ≥ 6 mm withstood significantly higher pressures than patches with an MOW ≤ 3 mm for both circular and square defects. The bursting pressure was found to increase over time for up to 3 h after being applied, indicating that adhesion of the TachoComb patch to the pleural tissue improved during the 3-h period.

Conclusion: Pleural defects repaired using an overlapping method with an MOW of 6 mm were able to withstand airway pressures ≥ 40 cmH(2)O.