Original scientific paper
Age changes in the mental aperture of experimental animals
Ivana Ciglar
; Zavod za bolesti zubi Stomatološkog fakulteta u Zagrebu, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Abstract
We examined age changes in the mental aperture of the lower jaw in 50 female white laboratory Wistair rats between 2 and 18 months old. At the same time, we analyzed changes in the mental aperture after experimental lesions of the nerves. The purpose of our investigation was to answer the following questions: 1. Does the mental aperture close during aging because of the deposition of bony material? 2. Is there a closure of the mental aperture after experimental lesions of the nerve? 3. W hat is the histological finding in the mental aperture after lesions of the nerve? Oiur investigations showed that the mental aperture closed in 12% in older animals, which indicates a deposition of bony material in this area. Significant changes in the mental aperture did not occur after lesions of the nerve which supports the hypothesis that closure of the aperture during aging is the result of a primary process in bony tissue and not a result of atrophy of nerves. Our results are significant for explaining the relationship between neural and bony tissue during aging of the lower jaw and for explaining the pathogenesis of osteogenic neuralgia.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
105707
URI
Publication date:
15.9.1982.
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