END-TO-SIDE NEURORRHAPHY SUPPORTED BY TRANSPOSED ACTIVE NERVE-FIBERS - ITS FUNCTIONAL END RESULT IN A RAT MODEL

End-to-side nerve repair is an old-fashioned technique which has been abandoned since the beginning of this century. Recently, new treatment modalities have been investigated to overcome problems associated wit h peripheral nerve injury where the proximal stumps are not available. In this study, 30 rats were divided into three groups. In the first g roup the peroneal nerves were sectioned and their distal ends were sut ured to the tibial nerve trunk. In the second group, the proximal part of the peroneal nerve was similarly sutured to the tibial trunk. A pr imary end-to-end neurorrhaphy performed on the peroneal nerves was the control group. At 2, 4, 8, 12, 20, and 28 weeks, functional assessmen t of nerve regeneration was performed using walking track analysis. Th e number of myelinated fibers and fiber diameters were measured, and a n electron microscopic evaluation was carried out. With morphometric a nalysis, the values were significantly different in favor of the contr ol group following the end-to-side repair technique. But, according to gait analysis, both groups had a similar satisfactory functional reco very; the classic end-to-side repair group had an unsatisfactory resul t. It is concluded that end-to-side neurorrhaphy, supported by transpo sed active nerve fibers, may result in a good integration network at t he repair site and is a possible functional reconstruction model where the proximal stump is not available after peripheral nerve injury.