The Effects of Local Fetal Brain Extract Administration on the Electromyogram of Crushed Sciatic Nerve in Rat

To evaluate the effects of local administration of the fetal brain extract (FBE) on the crushed peripheral nerve, 15 male Wistar rats were used. The right sciatic nerve of 10 rats was locally underwent the tense compression for 30 seconds and then randomly divided into experimental and control (sham) groups. The remained rats were considered as intact animals. Treatment was commenced weekly, by intramuscular injection of FBE around the injured site of experimental rats, started from the 1st week post-operation to the 5th week. The control (sham) rats were injected normal saline in the same manner. The delay time of the electromyographical records in different groups was measured from stimulation-response curves. This delay time was obtained by stimulating of the distal part of the sciatic nerve and recording the electrical response in the plantar muscles, using a computerized oscilloscope. The results indicating that the administration of FBE may improve dramatically the regeneration rate of the sciatic nerve in the early stage of the recovery period.