STUDIES OF THE VASCULARISATION OF BONE GRAFTS

¹ Formerly Foreign Research Scholar, Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford

1. The rates of vascularisation in 119 autogenous, homogenous and heterogenous bone grafts, placed in the femoral medullary cavity and under the renal capsule of rabbits, were studied.

2. Substantial differences have been found in the speed of vascular penetration and arrangement among autografts, homografts and heterografts : penetration of the heterogenous implant was six or more times slower. Moreover, large areas of the homografts and heterografts were often totally excluded from the circulation for as long as the research was continued (up to three months). Revascularisation of the cortical bone was slower and less profuse than in cancellous bone, keeping always the same respective proportion between the three types of bone we have described. The results on the kidney were much less constant, and I attribute this to the vascular peculiarities of the bed.

3. Vascular patterns peculiar to the time of implantation and type of graft are described.

4. Suggestive, even if not totally convincing, evidence was found of recanalisation of old vessels inside the graft by advancing vessels from the bed.

5. There is striking correlation between the rate of vascular penetration of the bone implants and their ultimate "take" or incorporation in the bed.