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Updated: May 1, 2026
Piezo High Accuracy Surgical Osteal Removal PHASOR: A Technique for Improved Cranial Window Surgery in Mice
Published on: March 2, 2018
Cell viability after osteotomy and bone harvesting: comparison of piezoelectric surgery and conventional bur
S Mouraret1, K S Houschyar2, D J Hunter2
1Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Surgery, Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Periodontology, Service of Odontology, Rothschild Hospital, AP-HP, Paris 7 - Denis, Diderot University, U.F.R. of Odontology, Paris, France.
Abstract:
The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare the influence of a piezoelectric device versus a conventional bur on osteocyte viability and osteoblast and osteoclast activity using an in vivo mouse model. Osteotomies were created and bone grafts were harvested using either a conventional bur or a piezoelectric device; the resulting injuries and bone grafts were evaluated over an extended time-course using molecular and cellular assays for cell death (TUNEL assay), cell viability (4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole (DAPI) staining), the onset of mineralization (alkaline phosphatase activity), and bone remodelling (tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase activity). Osteotomies created with a piezoelectric device showed greater osteocyte viability and reduced cell death. Bone grafts harvested with a piezoelectric device exhibited greater short-term cell viability than those harvested with a bur, and exhibited slightly more new bone deposition and bone remodelling. The difference in response of osteocytes, osteoblasts, and osteoclasts to bone cutting via a bur and via a piezoelectric device is negligible in vivo. Given the improved visibility and the margin of safety afforded by a piezoelectric device, they are the instrument of choice when cutting or harvesting bone to preserve soft tissue.
