TITLE:
Experimental Studies on the Irradiation of Facial Bones in Animals: A Review
AUTHORS:
Lucas Poort, Bernd Lethaus, Roland Böckmann, Doke Buurman, Jos De Jong, Frank Hoebers, Peter Kessler
KEYWORDS:
Irradiation, Animal Experiments, Facial Bones, Osteoradionecrosis
JOURNAL NAME:
International Journal of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery,
Vol.3 No.3,
May
8,
2014
ABSTRACT: Introduction: Radiotherapy is often used to
treat head and neck malignancies, with inevitable effects on the surrounding
healthy tissues. We have reviewed the literature concerning the experimental
irradiation of facial bones in animals. Materials and Methods: A PubMed search
was performed to retrieve animal experiments on the irradiation of facial bones
that were published between January 1992 and January 2012. The search terms
were “irradiation facial bone” and “irradiation osteoradionecrosis”. Results: Thirty-six
publications were included. The irradiation sources were Cobalt60,
orthovoltage, 4 - 6 megavolt photons, and brachytherapy. The total dose varied
between 8 - 60 Gy in single or multiple fractions. The literature presents a
broad range of animal studies that differ in terms of the in vivo model, irradiation, observation period, and evaluation of
results. Discussion: The different animal models used leave many questions
unanswered. A detailed and standardized description of the methodology and
results would facilitate the comparability of future studies.