title: Comparative study of laser and scalpel nerve transections.
abstract: This investigation was designed to compare standard scalpel transections of the tibial branch of the rat sciatic nerve with those performed using either a milliwatt carbon dioxide (CO2) or a potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP/532) laser. Four transection groups consisted of nerves sectioned with (1) scalpel (control), (2) milliwatt CO2 laser, (3) KTP/532 with microscope attachment, and (4) KTP/532 laser with 400-microns bare fiber. Each laser was used with the same parameters: 10 watts, 0.4-mm spot size, and continuous-wave mode. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was applied to the proximal stump for 30 min, and the animals were sacrificed 24 h later. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-labeled motoneuron cell bodies in the lumbar spinal cord were then counted. The average numbers of labeled neurons in each group were as follows: group I (n = 14) 518, group II (n = 8) 424, group III (n = 8) 351, and group IV (n = 8) 283. The standard deviations were quite large, however. When all laser transections were pooled and compared with paired scalpel transections, we found a significant difference, both by the paired t-test (P = 0.016) and by the Wilcoxon matched-paired test (P = 0.02). We conclude that laser transection significantly diminishes the number of neurons labeled by the retrograde transport of HRP.
authors.affiliation: Joint Center for Otolaryngology, Boston, MA 02115.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fligny
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: B R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Samonte
authors.forename: M P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Fried
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001370:Axonal Transport / Q000502:physiology*; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D005260:Female; D006735:Horseradish Peroxidase; D053685:Laser Therapy; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D009474:Neurons / Q000473:pathology / Q000502:physiology; D010710:Phosphates; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D013525:Surgical Instruments; D013977:Tibia / Q000294:innervation; D014025:Titanium
chemical_list: D010710:Phosphates; C064806:potassium titanylphosphate; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D014025:Titanium; D006735:Horseradish Peroxidase