Selective arterial medial injury fails to produce intimal hyperplasia in experimental animals.

The hypothesis was tested, in rats and rabbits, that selective medial injury may lead to arterial intimal hyperplasia. Lesions were produced by passage of a micro-suture through the arterial wall without penetration to the lumen, or controls in which the suture did penetrate. Vessels were examined histologically at intervals up to 2 weeks after suturing. Only vessels with penetrating sutures developed intimal hyperplasia, suggesting that medial injury alone is insufficient for the production of arteriosclerosis.