Comparison of Foaming Properties Between the Shirasu Porous Glass Membrane Device and Tessari's Three-way Stopcock Technique for Polidocanol and Ethanolamine Oleate Foam Production: A Benchtop Study

Purpose: To compare the characteristics of polidocanol (POL) and ethanolamine oleate (EO) sclerosing foams produced by a Shirasu porous glass membrane (SPGM) device with those made using a 3-way stopcock (3WSC). Materials and Methods: Foam half-life times were measured in an ex-vivo benchtop study. Computed tomography (CT) images of each foam were obtained over the time course, and a CT texture analysis was conducted. The bubble size in each foam was measured by an optical microscope. Results: Median foam half-life times were longer in the SPGM group than in the 3WSC group (POL: 198 vs 166 s, P =.02; EO: 640 vs 391 s, P <.01). In the CT texture analysis, median standard deviation (SD) and entropy (randomness) were lower, and median energy (uniformity) and gray-level cooccurrence matrix (GLCM) homogeneity were higher in the SPGM group than in the 3WSC group (POL SD: at 30 s and 50–300 s; POL entropy: at 0–60 s; EO SD: at 0–600 s; EO entropy: at 0–460 s; POL energy: at 0–40 s; POL GLCM homogeneity: at 0–250 s; EO energy: at 0–360 s; EO GLCM homogeneity: at 0–480 s; all P <.05). Median bubble diameters in the SPGM group and in the 3WSC group were 69 and 83 μm (P <.01), respectively, in the POL foam; and 36 and 36 μm (P =.45), respectively, in the EO foam. Conclusions: POL and EO foams had greater uniformity and longer foam half-life time when prepared with an SPGM device than with a 3WSC.