Low-intensity pulsed ultrasound treatment improved the rate of autograft peripheral nerve regeneration in rat

Low intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) has been widely used in clinic for the treatment of repairing pseudarthrosis, bone fractures and of healing in various soft tissues. Some reports indicated that LIPUS accelerated peripheral nerve regeneration including Schwann cells (SCs) and injured nerves. But little is known about its appropriate intensities on autograft nerves. This study was to investigate which intensity of LIPUS improved the regeneration of gold standard postsurgical nerves in experimental rat model. Sprague-Dawley rats were made into 10 mm right side sciatic nerve reversed autologous nerve transplantation and randomly treated with 250 mW/cm(2), 500 mW/cm(2) or 750 mW/cm(2) LIPUS for 2–12 weeks after operation. Functional and pathological results showed that LIPUS of 250 mW/cm(2) significantly induced faster rate of axonal regeneration. This suggested that autograft nerve regeneration was improved.