An Observational Study on the Efficacy of Methylene Blue Leak Test to Assess Anastomotic Integrity in Small Bowel Anastomosis

Introduction: A concern after small bowel anastomosis is the risk of anastomosis leak. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of methylene blue leak test in end-to-end small bowel anastomosis, focusing on postoperative leak rates and secondary outcomes such as timing of oral feeding and length of hospital stay. Materials and Methods: This is a retrospective study over 2 years. Leak test was done in all the study participants, and postoperatively, patients were monitored for the signs of anastomotic leak, like fever, abdominal distension, and drain output. The timing of oral feeding and hospital stay duration were noted, and results were analyzed to evaluate the clinical outcomes. Results: The study included thirty patients who underwent small bowel resection and anastomosis over a period of 2 years. The most common age group was between 51 and 75 years, with slight female predominance. In our study, four of the patients had positive intraoperative leak with methylene blue which were primarily repaired. These patients had no postoperative leak. Mostly, oral feeds were started on postoperative day 2, and the duration of stay was 3–4 days. There was a significant correlation between intra-operative leak with resuming the oral feeds and duration of hospital stay. Conclusion: This study concludes that intraoperative methylene blue test during small bowel ananstomosis is useful to identify intraoperative leaks, thereby reducing the incidence of postoperative leaks, early resumption of oral feeds, and reducing duration of hospital stay.