Peripheral nerve damage represents a prevalent medical concern, often precipitated by trauma, tumors, and damage resulting from medical interventions. These factors instigate biochemical and inflammatory changes at the injury site, exacerbating nerve degeneration. Consequently, mitigating these alterations may facilitate nerve protection post-injury. The present study aimed to assess the potential enhancement of the nerve regeneration process and improved functional outcomes by administering cinnamon aqueous extract (CAE) after sciatic nerve crush in rats. A total of 28 rats were allocated into four groups: sham, injury, and CAE at dosages of 100 and 400 mg/kg/day. By forceps, a crush injury was inflicted on the sciatic nerve on the left side.
Following this, CAE was managed for 28 consecutive days. Weekly assessments were conducted to measure the sciatic functional index (SFI). Additional evaluations involved electrophysiological and histomorphometric analyses, gastrocnemius muscle wet weight measurements, and serum total oxidant status (TOS) assessments. The results indicated that CAE could expedite recovery of the sciatic nerve following crush injury, with the 400 mg/kg/day dosage demonstrating superior effects on SFI recovery, muscle mass ratio, and myelin content.
This study illustrates that CAE exerts a beneficial influence on peripheral nerve restoration. Therefore, CAE therapy may be a promising treatment modality for peripheral nerve regeneration and functional recovery. However, further investigations are necessary to validate these findings and determine the optimal dosage of CAE.
