Surgical Approaches for Peripheral Nerve Injury Models in Yucatan Pigs

Area of Science:

• Veterinary Surgery
• Neuroscience Research
• Animal Models

Background:

• Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is a significant cause of disability following combat trauma.
• Large animal models are crucial for studying PNI due to anatomical and physiological similarities to humans.
• Existing research has predominantly focused on hindlimb nerve models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe reproducible surgical techniques for creating peripheral nerve injury models in Yucatan pigs.
• To establish standardized methods for median and sciatic nerve injury creation.
• To provide a foundation for advanced PNI research in large animals.

Main Methods:

• Surgical exposure and isolation of median, ulnar, and sciatic nerves in Yucatan pigs.
• Creation of single-cut and segmental nerve defects using a scalpel.
• Nerve reconstruction via primary neurorrhaphy or autografting for segmental defects.

Main Results:

• Successful application of techniques in 36 animals without complications.
• All injuries were amenable to immediate repair or reconstruction.
• Mean operative times were under 1 hour for single-cut and under 90 minutes for segmental defects.
• Surgeons with no prior nerve surgery experience were trained effectively.

Conclusions:

• This work introduces novel, reproducible surgical techniques for forelimb PNI models in pigs.
• The described methods expand the utility of porcine models for PNI research.
• These techniques offer a structured approach to reduce variability in large-animal PNI studies.