ABSTRACT
This study investigated the influence of selective sensory regeneration on less selective
motor regeneration in a rat femoral nerve model. The proximal stump of the motor branch
to the quadriceps muscle was sutured to the distal stumps of one motor and one sensory
branch. Regenerated sensory axons were degenerated secondarily, and motor regeneration
was later evaluated. The distal sensory stump attracted both regenerating sensory
and motor axons. Misdirected motor axons in the distal branches were not pruned over
time. The authors hypothesized that motor regeneration may have been influenced by
selective sensory regeneration or non-selective neurotropic attraction.
