Spontaneous anastomosis of vessels approximately 100 mu in diameter: an experimental study

Spontaneous anastomosis of vessels approximately 100 mu in diameter was studied in experiments on rats. The vessels--both arteries and veins--were transected and the stumps joined with a suture. In the veins, a fully functional anastomosis developed within 5 to 7 days after the intervention. Spontaneous anastomosis was, however, relatively uncommon with arteries and also took longer. The experiments support the view that anastomosis is governed by chemotaxis.