ULTRASOUND IMAGING of a CHITOSAN NERVE CONDUIT

Evaluating Chitosan Nerve Conduits That Bridge Sciatic Nerve Defects Visualized Using Ultrasound Imaging

By Medimaging International staff writers
Posted on 27 Aug 2014

Image: Ultrasound image of the morphology of a chitosan nerve conduit in a rat model of sciatic nerve defects at three weeks after modeling (Photo courtesy of Neural Regeneration Research journal).

The first use of ultrasound has been used by Chinese researchers to noninvasively observe the changes in chitosan nerve conduits implanted in lab rats over time. 

The investigators reported that newer, simpler, and more effective ways are needed to better assess the outcomes of repair using nerve conduits in vivo. The new technology distinctly revealed whether there are unsatisfactory complications after implantation, such as fracture, collapse, bleeding, or unusual swelling of the nerve conduits; and reflected the degradation mode of the nerve conduit in vivo over time. 

Ultrasound is a common noninvasive clinical detection modality that has been used in many fields. However, ultrasound has seldom been used to observe implanted nerve conduits in vivo. 

Dr. Hongkui Wang and coworkers from Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University (Nantong, Jiangsu Province, China) reported on their findings July 15, 2014, in the journal Neural Regeneration Research. Ultrasound, as a noninvasive imaging modality, they noted, can be used as a supplementary observation technique during standard animal research on peripheral nerve tissue engineering.