Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the expression of collagen in the process of masseter muscle reattachment to the cortical and cancellous bones of mandible.
Methods: A total of nine adult goats were used in the study. One was the control. The other eight were treated with bilateral detachment of the masseter muscles. The biopsies of bone and muscle were taken at 2, 4, 8 and 12 weeks after the operation. The characteristics of the healing muscle-bone interfaces were examined using immunohistochemical techniques.
Results: Immunohistochemical analysis illustrated that the locations of collagen type I, II and III were different during the healing process, but similar in the cortical and cancellous bones.
Conclusion: This study demonstrates that the distribution of the three types of collagens at the muscle-bone interfaces is associated with time, but not related with their locations.