Transfer of the rat tail: an experimental model for free osteocutaneous transfer.

A new experimental model for free transfer of the rat tail has been developed. The vascular and nerve anatomy of the tail was studied in ten Wistar rats. The caudal artery (average diameter: 0.8 mm) provides the principal arterial supply to the tail. The main venous drainage is from bilateral dorsolateral subcutaneous veins (average diameter: 1.2 mm). The inferior caudal trunk establishes the cutaneous nerve branches to the skin of the tail. Free transfer of the tail to the carotid artery and external jugular vein, with the attachment of the tail to the dorsum, allows for clinical monitoring of the transfer, without risk of autophagia. This transfer is easy to perform, simple to monitor, and provides consistent yet challenging microsurgery for the beginning microvascular surgeon. In addition to its utility as a training model, it may also have an application as an easy research model for composite tissue transfer.