Alterations in recovery from spinal cord injury in rats treated with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 for posterolateral arthrodesis.

Background: Treatment of trauma-related spinal instability with use of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) may appear as a viable option, but little is known of the direct effects of rhBMP-2 on the injured spinal cord. In the current study, we investigated the acute and long-term effects of using rhBMP-2 in the posterolateral spine at the level of a spinal cord injury in rats.

Methods: Fifty-two rats underwent a T10 dorsal hemisection and were assigned to one of two groups: the vehicle control group (twenty-four rats) or the rhBMP-2 group (twenty-four rats).