Recovery of Respiratory Function and Autonomic Diaphragm Movement Following Unilateral Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve to Phrenic Nerve Anastomosis in Rabbits

The authors studied restoration of respiratory function in rabbits, using the recurrent laryngeal nerve to restore function after the phrenic nerve had been severed. The results of this animal study are encouraging and suggest that a similar technique could possibly be used to help patients with severe cervical spinal cord injuries.