Bacteria transfer to the blood from the peritoneum is thought to be au
gmented when the diaphragmatic stomata are activated by an increased i
ntra-abdominal pressure. Therefore, it may be expected that the increa
se in intra-abdominal pressure during laparoscopic surgery can augment
the absorption of bacteria from the peritoneum to the blood. The pres
ent study examines the effect of pneumoperitoneum on bacteremia in exp
erimental Escherichia coli peritonitis in rabbits, Twenty-four rabbits
were divided into three groups. 10(9) colony forming units of E. coli
were inoculated intraperitoneally into group 1 (n = 8), Group 2 (n =
8) received an identical bacterial inoculum and underwent a midline la
parotomy at the 2nd hour, Group 3 (n = 8) also had an identical bacter
ial inoculum which was followed by 15 mm Hg CO2 pneumoperitoneum for 1
h at the 2nd hour, In all groups, the growth value (GV) was measured
in the 3rd- and 6th-hour blood cultures using the Bactec NR 730 system
, There was no difference in the 3rd- and 6th-hour GVs (p > 0.05) amon
g the three groups, In conclusion, pneumoperitoneum with 15 mm Hg CO2
in experimental E. coli peritonitis did not increase the bacteremia wh
en compared with the control and laparotomy groups.