A Two-Stage Approach Integrating Provisional Biomaterial-Mediated Stabilization Followed by a Definitive Treatment for Managing Volumetric Muscle Loss Injuries

Abstract

Treatment of volumetric muscle loss (VML) faces challenges due to its unique pathobiology and lower priority in severe musculoskeletal injury management. Consequently, a need exists for multi-stage VML treatment strategies to accommodate delayed interventions owing to comorbidity management or prolonged casualty care in combat settings. To this end, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was used at concentrations of 5%, 7.5%, and 10% to generate provisional muscle void fillers (MVFs) of varying stiffness values (1.125 kPa, 3.700 kPa, and 7.699 kPa) to stabilize VML injuries as part of a two-stage approach. These were implanted into a rat model for a duration of 4 weeks, then explanted and either left untreated (control) or treated through minced muscle grafting (MMG). Additional benchmarks included acute MMG and unrepaired groups. At the MVF explant, the 7.5% PVA group exhibited superior neuromuscular function compared to the 5% and 10% PVA groups, the least fibrosis, and the largest median myofiber size among all groups at the 12-week endpoint. Despite the 7.5% PVA’s superiority amongst the two-stage treatment groups, neuromuscular function was neither improved nor impaired relative to acute treatment benchmarks. This suggests that the future success of a two-stage VML treatment strategy will necessitate a more effective definitive intervention.