THE EFFECTIVENESS OF TETANUS TOXIN ON SCIATIC NERVE REGENERATION: A PRELIMINARY EXPERIMENTAL STUDY IN RATS

Object: The purpose was to investigate the effects of local tetanus toxin (TeTx) application on sciatic nerve regeneration following a rat model of transection injury. Methods: After both sciatic nerves were transected and repaired with three epineural sutures, 12 male Wistar albino rats were divided into two groups. 0.25 ml (2.5 flocculation units) TeTx was injected into a piece of absorbable gelatin sponge in TeTx group. In controls, 0.25 ml saline injected. Assessments were performed by using climbing degrees, compound muscle action potentials (CMAPs) and histological parameters (axon number and axonal diameter) 12th week. Results: CMAPs amplitudes were 11.6 64.7 mV and 1.4 61.3 mV in gastrocnemius and interdigital muscles in TeTx group (5.8 62.4 mV and 0.2 60.1 mV, P < 0.05). Climbing degrees were significantly different (61.6 61.7 vs. 38.3 62.6, P <0.05). Total axon numbers were higher (1341.1 657.3 vs. 877.5 634.9, P <0.05) and the mean axon diameter was smaller (4.2 62.1 vs. 2.5 61.9, P <0.05) in the TeTx group. Conclusion: This preliminary study firstly demonstrated the effectiveness of TeTx on nerve repair in experimental sciatic rat model based on functional, electromyographic and histological parameters. V C 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microsurgery 00:000‐000, 2014. The peripheral nerves injuries are challenging issue because concomitant disability is usually accompanied by a substantial effect on daily life that results in an extensive use of health-care resources. They may cause various clinical symptoms ranging from paresthesia to total paralysis, depending on the cause, magnitude, and duration of the trauma. After a nerve injury, process of regeneration and target innervation are complex and unpredictable. Despite its importance in clinical practice, functional recovery after a severe lesion of the major nerve is often incomplete and unsatisfied. Although several studies provided gratifying results in the management of nerve injuries, achievement of desired functional peripheral nerve regeneration is still inadequate. It is probably due to the fact that investigating its treatment options based on comparison analysis is quite difficult, and data about the factors that facilitate neuronal regeneration is still obscure in humans. The role of the various treatment options has been studied in tissue repair and regeneration. It has been showed that both endogenous factors and toxins could contribute to the spontaneous nerve regeneration in ani