Abstract:
Peripheral nerve injuries (PNI) commonly result in deficits including loss of motor and sensory function that result in paralysis of the denervated muscles, paresthesia of the affected dermatome, which severely degrade quality of life. These injuries mainly involve extremities and are commonly attributable to trauma from vehicular or industrial accidents; therefore, PNI mainly affect young and middle-aged individuals in their productive years. Regeneration of transected nerve fibers after microsurgical repair is commonly limited by scarring or neuroma formation, and functional recovery is highly dependent on the distance between the target organ and the zone of trauma since the rate of neurite regeneration is less than 1mm/day.
Despite advancements in microsurgery, the capacity to achieve regeneration of repaired nerves remains limited; furthermore, return of function is often incomplete. A study by Ruijs et al revealed that after repair of the median nerve and ulnar nerve, satisfactory motor recovery (M4 to M5) was achieved in only 51.6 % of patients, and satisfactory sensory recovery (S3+to S4) was achieved in only 42.6 % of patients.
Therefore, determining a method for accelerating axon regeneration in addition to modern microsurgical techniques and improving functional outcomes is essential. Therefore, the main aim of this presentation is to elucidate the clinical difficulty of PNI and to share some biomaterials and strategies that promotes axon regeneration and reduces scar formation near the nerve.

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