Clinical and Radiological Evaluation of Transplanted Fresh Ear Cartilage Impregnated With the Mesenchymal Cells & PRP in Treatment of Growth Plate Injury in Lamb

Growth plate is responsible for bone elongation and its injury could result in severe orthopedic problems. This study was aimed to investigate the radiographic changes after transplanting the fresh autogenous ear cartilage impregnated with PRP and MSc in treatment of growth plate injury in lamb. Cranial half (½) in length in full depth of the right hind limb growth plate was resected with bone oscillator and was transplanted with autogenous fresh harvested ear cartilage at the time of surgery in all of the 15 male lambs. Subsequently they were divided into 3 subgroups of 5 lambs in each group, control, PRP and MSCs. Radiographs were obtained from operated limbs at surgery time and 60 post-operative. Clinically, all lambs showed same lameness degree and mostly apparent after cast removal but gradually improved in the treated group which showed normal weight bearing after one month. Early physeal closure was seen in growth plate injured site only in control group without limb shortening or angular deformity. Lambs with MSCs showed mild bone bridge formation (1.4b ± 0.4b) as compared with PRP group (1.8 ± 0.37ab) and control group (2.8 ± 0.2 a) (P<0.05).On 60 days postoperatively control group showed significant mineralization (by 2.8±0.2a) while less mineralization was detected in MSCs and PRP groups (by 1.4± 0.4b and 2.4± o.4 ab). This study showed that MSCs & PRP can quite effective in preventing bone bridge formation and mineralization besides convergence of the transplanted tissue into growth plate cartilage.