Innesto di osso di origine equina nel trattamento delle atrofie mandibolari: Studio immunoistochimico nell'uomo

Objective: To perform an immunohistochemical evaluation of microvessel density (MVD), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) expression in mandibular ridge regeneration using an equine-derived bone substitute. Materials and methods: Ridge augmentations were performed in six patients using equine bone. After a six-month healing period, four bone cores from no augmented (control) and four from augmented sites (test) were retrieved and processed for immunohistochemistry. Results: Statistically, significant differences were found in the MVD expression between control and test sites (p < 0.05). The high and low intensities of VEGF, NOS1 and NOS3 were mainly expressed in test samples with statistical differences with control (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Within the limits of the small sample size, the present study indicated that equine bone is able to support neovascularization when used as a grafting material.