The proximal medial sural nerve biopsy model: a standardised and reproducible baseline clinical model for the translational evaluation of bioengineered nerve guides.

Autologous nerve transplantation (ANT) is the clinical gold standard for the reconstruction of peripheral nerve defects. A large number of bioengineered nerve guides have been tested under laboratory conditions as an alternative to the ANT. The step from experimental studies to the implementation of the device in the clinical setting is often substantial and the outcome is unpredictable.