title: Tightness of duraplasty in rabbits: a comparative study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to test, in rabbits, the tightness of seven dural substitution materials commonly used in neurosurgery, i.e., Lyodura (B. Braun Melsungen AG, Melsungen, Germany), Tutoplast dura (Tutogen Medical, Inc., Parsippany, NJ), Tutoplast fascia lata (Tutogen Medical, Inc.), autologous periosteum, Neuropatch (B. Braun Melsungen AG), Dacron (E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Co., Wilmington, DE), and Ethisorb (Ethicon, Inc., Somerville, NJ).
  
  
  METHODS
  Duraplasties were performed with sutures alone or were additionally fixed with fibrin glue. Leakage pressures were assessed by infusion of artificial cerebrospinal fluid, containing sodium fluorescein, into the cisterna magna and detection of fluorescence using a charge-coupled display camera with background substraction, 3 days, 3 weeks, or 3 months after surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Three days after implantation, the mean tightness values of duraplasties with Lyodura or Neuropatch were significantly higher (P = 0.007) than the values for the other substitutes. A significant improvement of tightness with increasing implantation time could be demonstrated for autologous periosteum (P = 0.0063). Improvement of tightness with the use of fibrin glue could be proven only for the heterologous grafts (P = 0.0071). The tightness values for Neuropatch fixed only with sutures were similar to those for the best heterologous substitutes implanted with additional fibrin glue. Lyodura, Tutoplast dura, and Neuropatch demonstrated favorable implantation characteristics; they were thin, flexible, and easily suturable. Neither adhesions to the brain nor space-occupying scars were noted.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results confirm the excellent suitability of Lyodura and Neuropatch for dural substitution.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany. filippi@gmx.net
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Filippi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Derdilopoulos
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heimann
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Krummenauer
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Perneczky
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Kempski
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001684:Biological Dressings; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003094:Collagen; D004388:Dura Mater / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008422:Materials Testing; D010521:Periosteum / Q000473:pathology / Q000637:transplantation*; D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates; D019919:Prosthesis Implantation; D011817:Rabbits; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: C032281:Lyodura; D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates; D003094:Collagen