Repair of peripheral nerve defects with epineural sheath grafts.
In this study, we investigated the potential of using a detubulized flat epineural sheath for bridging nerve gaps as an alternative to nerve autografting. Nerve gaps were created by removing a 1.2-cm segment of sciatic nerves. Later, the epineurium was incised longitudinally, and after fascicle removal, a flat rectangular epineural sheath was created. Five experimental groups (6 rats each) included: autograft and no treatment controls and epineural sheath groups repaired with 1 strip, 2-strip, and full epineural sheath grafts. Assessments performed at 3, 6, and 12 weeks included functional (pinprick, toe-spread), neurosensory (somatosensory-evoked potentials), and histomorphometric evaluations. The functional results of toe-spread, somatosensory-evoked potentials, and histomorphometric data revealed comparable outcomes between autograft, 2-strip, and full sheath grafts, indicating adequate nerve regeneration. Thus, the new epineural sheath graft technique introduced in this study can be considered as an alternative method to standard nerve autografting technique.
Department of Plastic Surgery, The Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA. siemiom@ccf.org
Maria
M
Siemionow
Yavuz
Y
Demir
Abir Lal
AL
Mukherjee
D000818:Animals; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000294:innervation; D008297:Male; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000473:pathology; D009133:Muscular Atrophy / Q000473:pathology; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000637:transplantation*; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D012584:Sciatic Nerve / Q000601:surgery*; D012677:Sensation; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous