Microsurgical application of freeze-dried arterial allografts

Arterial allografts of 1.0 mm diameter and 1.0 cm length were freeze-dried and placed into the femoral arteries of 15 Sprague-Dawley albino male rats in order to study patency and tissue reactions of the host. Patency in the first three postoperative days was determined by monitoring viability of the epigastric island flap. All grafts were patent during this early postoperative period. Fourteen of the subjects were surgically explored after 2 months of observation. At that time, 13 (93%) remained patent. Histopathological studies, and transmission and scanning electron microscopy were used to analyze the specimens. These data demonstrated that freeze-dried arteries are remodeled by the host, but do not induce a cellular immune reaction. Dependable freeze-dried microarterial allografts have potential future application in clinical microvascular surgery.