The potential use of cyclosporine in reconstructive surgery

Cyclosporine, the first of a new generation of selective immunosuppressive agents, has already proved to be of exceptional value in human organ transplantation; however, its role in human reconstructive surgery remains to be established. The possibility that short-term treatment could be sufficient for indefinite survival of bone, muscle, nerve, and vein allografts is attractive and might provoke changes in prevailing attitudes regarding the use of allogenous tissues in reconstructive procedures. Cyclosporine may start a new line of immunosuppressive agents with more potent therapeutic effect and less potential toxicity. This new generation of drugs, together with the experience in tissue transfer amassed by plastic surgeons during the last decade, may eventually result in unprecedented possibilities in surgical reconstruction.