The effects of hesperidin on stricture formation in corrosive esophageal burns: an experimental study

Aim/background: Esophageal strictures in children that develop as a result of accidental ingestion of corrosive substances remain an important health problem. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of Hesperidin, an effective bioflavonoid in the proliferative and exudative phase of inflammation, on the stricture formation in corrosive esophageal burns.

Methods: Experimental esophageal burns in rats were created using a modified Gehanno and Guedon model with 20% NaOH. Rats were divided into 5 groups. In the Sham group, the distal esophagus was prepared and cannulated according to the model, but no NaOH was administrated. The esophageal burn was created with NaOH in the other groups. The burned groups were divided into two groups as untreated (T¹⁴, T²¹) and treated with 100 mg/kg/day Hesperidin (H¹⁴, H²¹) intraperitoneally, and these groups were divided into two according to their sacrification periods (14 and 21 days). Inflammation, fibrosis, and necrosis were graded by histopathological evaluation in all groups. The efficacy of treatment was evaluated using the weight of rats, stenosis index, and histopathological parameters.

Results: Histopathologic damage scores such as inflammation, necrosis, and fibrosis were lower in the H¹⁴ and H²¹ groups and higher in the T¹⁴ and T²¹ groups. And also stenosis index was found higher in T¹⁴ and T²¹ groups (p < 0.05), while it was similar to the Sham group in H¹⁴ and H²¹ groups. No statistically significant difference was found between the H¹⁴ and H²¹ groups in terms of stenosis index. When weights of the rats at the beginning and end of the experiment were compared, weights of the H¹⁴ and H²¹ groups and the Sham group were similar. There was a significant decrease in the weight of the rats in the T¹⁴ and T²¹ groups (p < 0.001).

Conclusions: This study is the first to use Hesperidin in preventing esophageal damage in an esophageal caustic burn model. It was shown that Hesperidin was effective in reducing macroscopic and microscopic histopathologic damage in the corrosive esophageal burn model, preventing the stricture formation, and has positive effects on nutrition in rats with an esophageal burn.