Experimental In-Vivo Models Used in Fat Grafting Research for Volume Augmentation in Soft Tissue Reconstruction.

Area of Science:

• Regenerative Medicine
• Plastic Surgery
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Fat grafting research is growing, utilizing animal models for pre-clinical studies.
• Current animal models lack standardization, hindering comparative analysis of techniques and results.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze and compare published animal models used in fat grafting research from 1968 to 2015.
• Identify common practices and variations in animal models for fat grafting.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of publications (1968-2015) on animal models in fat grafting.
• Data extraction included species, graft characteristics, injection techniques, sacrifice time, and quantification methods.

Main Results:

• Mice were the most common species (56%), particularly "athymic nude" strains (44%).
• Autologous fat was frequently used (52%), with subcutaneous dorsum as the common recipient site (51%).
• Graft volume averaged 0.80±0.60 mL, often injected via a single bolus (57%), and quantified by weight (63%).

Conclusions:

• Significant heterogeneity exists in current animal models for fat grafting research.
• A consensus on standardized animal models is proposed to enable better comparison of techniques and outcomes.
• Further exploration of larger animal models may be beneficial for human translation after small animal data is exhausted.