Ultrastructural changes of linea alba in relation to age, repeated pregnancy and obesity

ABSTRACT

This study was carried out on 12 married females. They were classified into four equal groups according to three parameters Age, weight and number of pregnancies. Group 1 was used as a control group, group 2 included multipara, group 3 included obese females and group 4 included old females. Biopsies from the linea alba were taken after abdominal incision during surgical procedure and prepared for ultrastructural examination. The results of this study revealed that the linea alba in multipara and obese females showed ultrastructural changes in the form of wide spaces separating the collagen fibrils, variation in the diameter or the fibrils [most fibrils were thin in multipara and thick in obese]. Numerous fibroblasts were also encountered. On the other hand, in old females, the collagen fibrils appeared aggregated into clumps separated by wide areas. The majority of the fibrils were thick in diameter. Some showed spiny outline and dark stained periphery. Few individual fibrils showed moth-eaten appearance. Fibroblasts were rarely encountered in the examined biopsies whereas fibrocytes and macrophages were numerous