Evans P J, Awerbuck D C, Mackinnon S E, Wade J A, McKee N H
Department of Surgery, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Muscle Nerve. 1994 Oct;17(10):1190-200. doi: 10.1002/mus.880171010.
In order to assess the effects of storage on nerve grafts, the isometric contractile function of the gastrocnemius muscle was assessed 14 months following sciatic nerve autografting in the rat. Three-centimeter sciatic nerve grafts were stored at either 5 degrees C or 22 degrees C for 6 h, 24 h, or 3 weeks in an organ transplant solution. Muscle mass and maximal force in the fresh control graft group returned to 47% and 36% of normal levels, respectively, which was similar to stored grafts. Storage at 5 degrees C was superior to 22 degrees C and there was no decrement in contractile function in grafts stored up to 3 weeks at 5 degrees C. These findings suggest that the storage of nerve grafts is a feasible technique that might be applied to nerve allografts, thus permitting elective reconstruction of large peripheral nerve gaps.
