An animal experiment on reusable Double-core Bone Harvest Chamber in vivo

Objective To explore the feasibility of implanting self-designed reusable Double-core Bone Harvest Chamber into Guizhou mini-pigs for observation of the osteogenic effect of pre-installed artificial bone material on bone ingrowth. Methods Bilateral humeral and femoral metaphyses in 2 Guizhou mini-pigs were used for the present experiment.In the first operation,empty Double-core Bone Harvest Chambers( n =8) were implanted into the bilateral humeral and femoral metaphyses of the animals as blank controls.Iu the second operation,the bilateral humeral and femoral metaphyses were implanted with the chambers pre-installed with reconstituted bone xenograft in one core and nothing in the other core (experiment group 1,n =8).In the third operation,the bilateral humeral and femoral netaphyses were implanted with the chambers pre-installed with reconstituted bone xenograft in one core and gelatin sponge in the other core (experiment group 2, n =8).The time interval between 2 operations was 2 months.The core materials were retrieved and replaced for assessment by gross observation and histological examination to compare bone formation between groups. Results Two months post-operation, the reconstituted bone xenografts pre-installed in one core of the chambers became hard gray and white and red tissue while the cores pre-installed with nothing and gelatin sponge were filled with soft brown tissue.Light microscopy showed new bone formation around the reconstituted bone xenografts and only fibrous tissue in the empty cores and cores pre-installrd with gelatin sponge. Conclusion The reusable Double-core Bone Harvest Chamber we designed can be used to observe the osteogenic potential of artificial bone material. Key words: Bone and bone tissue; Models, animal; Swine;  Bone harvest chamber