Histological Study of the Development of Cartilage after Perichondrial Vascularized Grafting

Abstract

The authors investigated histologically the process of neocartilage formation in vascularized transplantation of rabbit ear perichondrium. The chondrocytes made their first appearance 4 days after transplantation, and the appositional growth of neocartilage lasted for about 3 weeks, although maximum growth occurred in the first 9 days after transplantation. The neoperichondrium of neocartilage was not observed until its gradual appearance at the end of this period of remarkable appositional growth. The time required for the neocartilage to become mature varied, and some cartilage was still not mature at 6 months after transplantation.