Rat model of laryngeal transplantation with normal circulation maintained by combination with the tongue

Recent research on laryngeal transplantation used a rat model with physiologically abnormal circulation, because the common carotid artery was used for venous drainage. Since a model with normal circulation is better for accurate assessment, we developed a vascularized laryngeal graft, using the common carotid artery as the arterial supply and the external jugular vein as the venous drainage. The transplant included other tributaries from the tongue and the pharynx by combination with the tongue, because the tributaries from the larynx were very small. Ten transplants were performed. The transplanted organs were examined daily. Seven days after transplantation, the composite grafts were evaluated histologically. The mortality rate was 10%. All composite grafts were fully viable, and their structure was maintained in the remaining nine rats. Our model is appropriate for experiments on laryngeal transplantation.