Guided bone regeneration in long-bone defects with a structural hydroxyapatite graft and collagen membrane.

There are few synthetic graft alternatives to treat large long-bone defects resulting from trauma or disease that do not incorporate osteogenic or osteoinductive factors. The aim of this study was to test the additional benefit of including a permeable collagen membrane guide in conjunction with a preformed porous hydroxyapatite bone graft to serve as an improved osteoconductive scaffold for bone regeneration. A 10-mm-segmental long-bone defect model in the rabbit radius was used.