Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 4, 2026
A Protocol for Constructing a Rat Wound Model of Type 1 Diabetes
Published on: February 17, 2023
Pulsed radiofrequency energy accelerates wound healing in diabetic mice
Qin Li1, Huangkai Kao, Evan Matros
1Boston, Mass.; Wuhan and Changsha, People's Republic of China; Tao-Yuan, Taiwan; and New York, N.Y. From the Division of Plastic Surgery and the Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School; the Department of Vascular Surgery, Union Hospital, Huazhong University of Science and Technology; the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang Gung University; Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center; and the Department of Burns and Plastic Surgery, The Third Xiangya Hospital of Central South University.
Background:
Impaired healing is a problematic and common complication of chronic wounds. Although pulsed radiofrequency energy has been used in the treatment of chronic wounds with promising efficacy, its mechanism is still poorly characterized. In this study, the authors used a diabetic mouse model to illustrate the action of pulsed radiofrequency energy on cutaneous wounds and set the stage to begin to understand its mechanism.
Methods:
Full-thickness cutaneous wounds were created in diabetic mice (n = 26). The experimental group (n = 13) was subject to pulsed radiofrequency energy treatment two times per day, whereas the sham group (n = 13) was subjected to sham devices. The rate of wound closure was evaluated by digital analysis of surface area of the wound bed, zone of reepithelialization, and rate of contraction. Mice were euthanized on days 7, 10, 22, and 42 and wounds were evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively by hematoxylin and eosin, Masson's trichrome, and Ki-67 assay for cell proliferation.
Results:
In the experimental group, the rate of wound closure was significantly accelerated, particularly beyond day 17. Contraction contributed to the wound healing process rather than reepithelialization. This was also associated with increased granulation tissue that was most prominent by day 22 and with enhanced dermal cell proliferation, with 25 percent and 45 percent Ki-67-positive nuclei on days 10 and 22, respectively, as compared with control animals.
Conclusion:
These results indicate that pulsed radiofrequency energy accelerates impaired wound healing mainly through wound contraction by means of stimulating cell proliferation, granulation tissue formation, and collagen deposition.
