Restoration of respiration by nerve anastomosis

¹ Department of Gastrointestinal Research, Medical Research Institute, Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago, Illinois

In dogs, the central stump of an intercostal nerve or of a long thoracic nerve was anastomosed to the distal stump of a phrenic nerve. In the former group, restoration of diaphragmatic respiration occurred in most animals, while in the latter group, this was observed in only one of three experiments. In acute experiments, intercostal nerves showed distinct respiratory impulses in all cases, while in the long thoracic nerves impulses were seen in one of three experiments; they were absent in the lower vagus and femoral nerve.