ArticlePloS one2013
Effect of delayed peripheral nerve repair on nerve regeneration, Schwann cell function and target muscle recovery.
Article in PloS one, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 102 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
102 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 207 citations in OpenAlex.
- Serum Biomarkers for Traumatic Peripheral Nerve Injury: A Systematic Review.Muscle & nerve · 2025Pooled it
- A meta-analysis and systematic review: association of timing and muscle strength after nerve transfer in upper trunk palsy.Neurosurgical review · 2025Pooled it
- Polyethylene Glycol: The Future of Posttraumatic Nerve Repair? Systemic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2019Pooled it
- MRI fat suppression techniques in traumatic and entrapment-related brachial plexus conditions: A scoping review.European journal of radiology open · 2026Review
- Multichannel, biomimetic scaffolds improve functional connectivity following traumatic long-gap peripheral nerve injury.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Integrative Korean Medicine Treatment Including Ultrasound-Guided Shinbaro 2 Pharmacopuncture and Motion-Style Acupuncture Treatment for Acute Lumbar Disc Herniation with Foot Drop: A Case Report.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Wallerian Degeneration and Nerve Regeneration-A Review of Cellular and Molecular Events.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Endogenous Network Modeling Reveals Mechanisms of Repair Schwann Cell Decline and Potential Recovery Targets.Biology · 2026Article
- Peripheral Nerve Surgery and Chemotherapy: A Review, Index, and Decision Tree for Nerve Surgeons Considering Neurotization After Oncological Nerve Injuries.Neurosurgery practice · 2026Review
- Integrating Cells, Biomaterials, and Advanced Engineering for Next-Generation Peripheral Nerve Repair.Cells, tissues, organs · 2026Review
- Indirect sciatic nerve transection from gunshot induced comminuted femoral fracture.Radiology case reports · 2026Article
- TEMPOL Enhances Polyethylene Glycol Axon Fusion Following Sciatic Nerve Transection in Adult Rats.ACS chemical neuroscience · 2026Article
- Aging and Peripheral Nerve Injuries: Impaired Repair, Inflammaging Impact, and Regeneration Resistance.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- Early symptom aggravation following ulnar nerve transposition for cubital tunnel syndrome: incidence, predictive factors, and threshold-based risk stratification.Neurosurgical review · 2026Article
- Effectiveness of filling structures within nerve guidance conduits in a rat sciatic nerve injury model.Regenerative therapy · 2025Article
- Engineering the Future of Restorative Clinical Peripheral Nerve Surgery.Advanced healthcare materials · 2025Review
- Quantitative Ultrashort Echo Time MRI for Evaluation of Sciatic Nerve Degeneration and Regeneration in Rat Models.Radiology · 2025Article
- FK506 Enhancement of Neuromuscular Junction Recovery After Nerve Injury Is Macrophage-Dependent.Muscle & nerve · 2025Article
- Delayed Repair of Recurrent Motor Branch Injury after Carpal Tunnel Release.Journal of hand surgery global online · 2025Article
- Top 75 most-cited articles in hand microsurgery: A bibliometric and visualised analysis.Journal of hand and microsurgery · 2025Article
42 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Despite advances in surgical techniques for peripheral nerve repair, functional restitution remains incomplete. The timing of surgery is one factor influencing the extent of recovery but it is not yet clearly defined how long a delay may be tolerated before repair becomes futile. In this study, rats underwent sciatic nerve transection before immediate (0) or 1, 3, or 6 months delayed repair with a nerve graft. Regeneration of spinal motoneurons, 13 weeks after nerve repair, was assessed using retrograde labeling. Nerve tissue was also collected from the proximal and distal stumps and from the nerve graft, together with the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscles. A dramatic decline in the number of regenerating motoneurons and myelinated axons in the distal nerve stump was observed in the 3- and 6-months delayed groups. After 3 months delay, the axonal number in the proximal stump increased 2-3 folds, accompanied by a smaller axonal area. RT-PCR of distal nerve segments revealed a decline in Schwann cells (SC) markers, most notably in the 3 and 6 month delayed repair samples. There was also a progressive increase in fibrosis and proteoglycan scar markers in the distal nerve with increased delayed repair time. The yield of SC isolated from the distal nerve segments progressively fell with increased delay in repair time but cultured SC from all groups proliferated at similar rates. MG muscle at 3- and 6-months delay repair showed a significant decline in weight (61% and 27% compared with contra-lateral side). Muscle fiber atrophy and changes to neuromuscular junctions were observed with increased delayed repair time suggestive of progressively impaired reinnervation. This study demonstrates that one of the main limiting factors for nerve regeneration after delayed repair is the distal stump. The critical time point after which the outcome of regeneration becomes too poor appears to be 3-months.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.