Experimental and clinical experience with distraction osteogenesis.

G.A. Ilizarov's clinical insights and experimental biology have developed into what is known today as distraction osteogenesis. Initially used for the treatment of fractures and nonunions, his methods have proven successful for limb lengthening and bone transportation. A brief history of the development of distraction osteogenesis, definition of terms, methods, and monitoring techniques are described. The primary mechanism, intramembranous ossification, is direct bone formation in uniform gradients of mineralization from a central fibrous interzone. New bone is produced from the local host surfaces and quickly remodels to the equivalent macro and microstructure. Blood supply at the focus of distraction, dependency on a latency period, different rates, and rhythms of distraction are all tested and discussed. Data from experimental tibial lengthening in more than 125 animals (dogs, rabbits, and rats) show that distraction osteogenesis provides unlimited new bone formation that remodels at daily rates ranging from 200 to 400 microns. In over 100 clinical cases, patients ranging in age from 18 months to 49 years have regenerated bone at an average rate of 213 microns in adults and 385 microns in children. Approximately 10% of these cases required supplemental bone grafts. The article proposes that distraction osteogenesis might be successfully applied in craniofacial surgery.