Comparison between electrosurgery and cold blade in tongues of rats: a preliminary experimental study.
OBJECTIVE
To compare tissue cicatrization in the tongue of rats using electrosurgery and the cold blade.


METHODS
Ten adult male Wistar rats were divided into two groups of 5 animals each, according to the time of sacrifice (3 and 7 days). Each animal had two incisions, one made with a cold blade and the other with an electric blade, both of which were approximately 0.5 mm in length. Following sacrifice of the animals, the tongues were submitted to a histological study in order to classify the presence of angiogenesis, fibroblastic proliferation, epithelial proliferation and inflammatory cells as good, moderate and weak.


RESULTS
The wound made with electric blade presented a delay in the healing process and a greater inflammatory response as compared with the cold blade, despite the fact that there was no statistically significant difference (p<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
There were no significant statistical differences between electrosurgery and the cold blade in relation to angiogenesis, fibroblastic proliferation, epithelial proliferation or the presence of inflammatory cells at any time of evaluation.
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, PhD Program in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, UFPE, Recife, Brazil. belmiro@pesquisador.cnpq.br
Belmiro Cavalcanti do Egito
BC
Vasconcelos
Lígia Helena Macedo de
LH
Freitas
Luciana Karla de Morais
LK
Santos
José Ricardo Dias
JR
Pereira
Riedel
R
Frota
Gabriela Granja
GG
Porto
D000818:Animals; D004598:Electrosurgery / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000592:standards; D008297:Male; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013525:Surgical Instruments; D013997:Time Factors; D014059:Tongue / Q000098:blood supply / Q000601:surgery*; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology*