The effect of chronic red cell mass depletion on the healing of bone grafts

The purpose of this study was to determine whether a marked decrease in red cell mass with a normal blood volume (normovolemic anemia) would compromise osseous repair in experimental mandibular bone grafts. In adult male dogs, osseous defects in the mandibular body were restored with combined allogeneic and autologous bone grafts. In the experimental group, the red cell mass was depleted by a mean 55% of the baseline value and the resulting anemia maintained for eight weeks by serial phlebotomies. In the control group phlebotomy was not performed. Osseous repair was evaluated by quantitative sequential radionuclide imaging, subjective and quantitative determinations of graft stability, and histologic examination. Results demonstrated no significant difference in bone graft repairs between the anemic and control animals by any of the evaluation methods over the eight-week period of study ( P > 0.05).