EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON PREVENTION OF DENERVATION ATROPHY

1997 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 07671322
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: General surgery
• Research Institution: JICHI MEDICAL SCHOOL
• Principal Investigator: UEDA Kazuki Jichi Medical School, Medical College Associate Professor, 医学部, 助教授 (40160163)
• Project Period (FY): 1995 – 1997
• Keywords: denervation atrophy / nerve implantation

Research Abstract

The prevention of denervation atrophy of a skeletal muscle by nerve implantation to a muscle belly was investigated in rat experimental models. The tibial nerve branch innervating the lateral head of the gastrocnemius muscle was transected and subsequently repaired by either simple nerve suture or interpositional nerve grafting. The tibial nerve branch innervating the medial head of the gastrocnemius was cut away to avoid innervation of the lateral head by this branch. This manipulation was done on both legs. Simultaneously, the peroneal nerve was transected and implanted directly to the lateral head of the gastrocnemius muscle on one side, and the nerve was cut off on the other side as a control. In another group, at 2 months after interpositonal nerve grafting, the rat was anesthetized similarly for the resection of the implanted nerve and followed for 4 months thereafter. When isometric tension was measured after 6 months, the tension was greater on the side of nerve implantation in the nerve suture group (p<0.05) and, but there was no difference in tension between the two sides in the nerve graft group. The increase on the nerve-implanted side averaged 13% in the nerve suture group. Our results show that the interval between the initiation of neurotization by implanted nerve and that by repaired nerve might influence the prevention effect of denervation atrophy.