Generating a Rat Model of Tibial Neuroma Transposition

Take an anesthetized rat with one hind leg shaved. Incise from midcalf to ankle, exposing the muscle.

Dissect the connective tissue layer to reveal the tibial nerve.

Create a subcutaneous tunnel beneath the skin. Transect the nerve to induce injury.

Thread the proximal end of the severed nerve through the tunnel and suture it to the tunnel's distal end, positioning the nerve subcutaneously.

Close the incision, clean the area, and allow the rat to recover.

Following transection, the nerve degenerates as axons and myelin sheaths break down.

Denervated Schwann cells release signaling molecules to attract macrophages for debris clearance, following which the severed nerve sends out axonal outgrowths to promote regeneration.

Without proper target structures to reinnervate, disorganized axons form a neuroma, a mass of axons, Schwann cells, collagen fibers, and blood vessels.

Regenerating axons release molecules that excite nearby nociceptors, pain-signaling sensory neurons, leading to neuroma-associated pain signals.

Locate the knee and gently make a longitudinal incision of 2 to three centimeters over the medial side of the hind paw from mid-calf to ankle using a scalpel. If needed, open the s