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Survival analysis of rats implanted with porous titanium tracheal prosthesis
Philippe Schultz1, Dominique Vautier, Johanna Chluba
1Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Hautepierre Hospital, Centre de Recherche Odontologique, Strasbourg, France.
Background:
Surgical treatment of a malignancy in the trachea may lead to a long resection that has to be reconstructed with an artificial prosthesis. However, most of the available prostheses encounter inflammatory rejection and mechanical constraint problems. To improve tracheal rehabilitation a porous titanium prosthesis was developed. The aim of this study was to test the biocompatibility of this novel material.
Methods:
Seventeen rats had a partial tracheal prosthesis made of porous titanium inserted in the cervical trachea. The histologic analysis of the tissue surrounding the prosthesis was performed in 11 surviving animals after a period of 15 to 41 days.
Results:
Fibroblast colonization of titanium pores and a ciliary cylindrical epithelial layer developed on the endoluminal side of the prosthesis and the inflammatory reaction was minimal.
Conclusions:
The results of this short-term study validate, from surgical and histologic standpoints, the usefulness of a porous titanium tracheal prosthesis.