Vocal Fold Submucosal Mesna Injection and Microflap Elevation in a Rabbit Model

Mesna triggers chemical dissection in tissues by breaking down disulfide bonds and is used during surgical dissections in several areas. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effect of submucosal mesna infiltration on microflap elevation and the histopathological findings of its effects on the vocal fold lamina propria in a rabbit model.

Eight adult male New Zealand white rabbits were used in the study. Each vocal fold was randomized, and 0.1 mL of mesna was injected into one-fold and 0.1 mL of saline to the contralateral fold. An incision was made on the epithelium and elevation was performed. The animals were sacrificed after two weeks, and the vocal folds were excised. Inflammatory response, fibrosis, and epithelial thickness were evaluated with hematoxylin eosin and Masson's Trichrome staining. Elevation time and histopathological features were compared between the two groups.

The elevation time (20.9 ± 1.6 second) in the saline group was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than in the mesna group (15.0 ± 3.4 second). The inflammation (1.3 ± 0.5 vs. 1.1 ± 1.0, respectively) and fibrosis scores (1.0 ± 0.8 vs. 0.8 ± 0.7, respectively) did not differ significantly (P > 0.05 in both). Epithelial thickness (12.5 ± 4.7 vs. 10.3 ± 5.3, respectively) did not differ significantly (P ˃ 0.05) in the mesna and saline groups either.

We determined that mesna facilitates the microflap elevation of the vocal folds in rabbits and does not damage the histological structure of vocal folds. This study encourages future studies to evaluate the use of mesna, now actively used across disciplines, in phonosurgery as well.