Adhesive Process

ADHESIVE PROCESS (from Latin adhaesio—connection, fusion), represents a pathological process leading to the fusion of two adjacent surfaces. Most often, the A. p. occurs in serous cavities (pleura, peritoneum, pericardium); the basis of the A. p. usually lies in the fibrinous inflammation of the adjacent serous membranes, at the end or subsidence of which the organization of the fibrinous masses occurs, i.e., the ingrowth of granulation tissue into them. The connection of the granulation protrusions of two opposite surfaces and the subsequent fibrous transformation of the granulation tissue results in a stable connective tissue fusion of these surfaces. The A. p. described above can spread to the entire given serous cavity, which leads to its complete overgrowth, obliteration (see), or is limited to separate areas; in such cases, separate connective tissue connections form between the adjacent surfaces, called adhesions, synechiae (see).