Long term evaluation of experimental median nerve repair by frozen and fresh nerve autografts, allografts and allografts repopulated by autologous Schwann cells.
The authors used different kinds of peripheral nerve grafts to reconstruct a terminal branch of the brachial plexus (the median nerve) gap of adult Sprague-Dawley rats, including fresh or frozen autografts and allografts from Norway rats. They also performed acellular allograft repopulation by autogenous Schwann cells, to improve the environment for nerve regeneration. Three, six, nine and twelve months after grafting, rats underwent histological assessment (muscle, nerve and spinal cord) and simple functional assessment by the grasping test. Initially, the functional recovery of frozen grafts was lower than fresh graft recovery, but twelve months after surgery it was similar for both types of graft.
Accioli-De-Vaconcellos
Zulmar Antônio
ZA
Group de Recherche: Régénération des Nerfs Périphériques et des Muscles Squelettiques, Laboratoire de Neurobiologie, Université René Descartes, Paris, France.
Kassar-Duchossoy
Lina
L
Mira
Jean-Claude
JC