A minimally invasive technique for serial intraosseous perfusion measurements in the murine tibia using laser Doppler flowmetry

In biomedical and preclinical research, the current standard method for measuring blood perfusion inside murine bone, radiolabeled microspheres, is a terminal procedure that cannot be used to monitor longitudinal perfusion changes. Laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) can assess perfusion within the proximal tibial metaphysis of mice in vivo • Unlike previous endpoint-only techniques, this modified LDF procedure can be performed weekly to monitor serial changes to intraosseous perfusion in the murine tibia; • The modified LDF technique utilizes a smaller, more localized incision to minimize invasiveness and speed recovery.