The Macaca rhesus monkey skull and surgical intervention

Abstract

Six Macaca rhesus monkeys were subjected to various surgical procedures and observed with respect to postnatal changes in mandibular and cranial symmetry and growth. Two major experimental groups were employed. The first group of operations consisted of removal of sections of the posterosuperior ramal surface, including part of the condyle. Evaluation of the skulls of these animals after a growth period of approximately seventeen months showed no appreciable effect on mandibular growth or cranial symmetry. Removal of the entire condyle in one animal had the greatest effect on the mandibular growth, although no cranial asymmetry was demonstrated. This effect does not appear to be restricted to any specific area of the condyle. The second group, which received autogenous epiphyseal plate transplants from the distal head of the fifth metatarsal following condylectomy, revealed a dense fibrous connective tissue replacement of some of the graft tissue. Although remnants of a plate were demonstrable, the articular cartilage of the graft appears to be the major growth-contributing site. Epiphyseal plate proliferation did not make any significant contribution to the mandible.