Twelve goats were divided into two groups. In group I, the sciatic nerve was severed, and anastomosed immediately using epineural technique. In group II, a 2 cm long piece of the nerve was resected and grafted at the same site using epineural sutures. All the srugical manipulations were made under deep sedation and local infiltration analgesia. All the animals of groups I and II exhibited severe lameness for 60 and 120 postoperative days, respectively. Thereafter, gradual improvement was observed in animals of group I and appreciable recovery was recorded by day 180 postoperatively. Whereas in animals of group II, lameness persisted for more than 210 postoperative days. In group I, histopathological observations made at the end of the study (240 days) showed sprouting of axons with proliferation ofepineurium and perineurium connective tissue. New blood vessels in epineurium were seen. In animals of group II, the presence of massive fibrous tissue and abundance of mononuclear inflammatory cells were observed. Fibrous tissue in between nerve axons disrupted their growth. The widening inter-fascicular space fibrosis with vacuolation were seen in animals of grafted group at the end of the study.
Goats, Nerve grafting, Neuroanastomosis
