Cytokine expression in muscle following traumatic injury

Heterotopic ossification (HO) occurs at a high frequency in severe orthopaedic extremity injuries; however, the etiology of traumatic HO is virtually unknown. Osteogenic progenitor cells have previously been identified within traumatized muscle. Although the signaling mechanisms that lead to this dysregulated differentiation pathway have not been identified, it is assumed that inflammation and fibrosis, which contribute to an osteoinductive environment, are necessary for the development of HO. The hypothesis of this study was that cytokines related to chronic inflammation, fibrogenesis, and osteogenesis become up-regulated following severe muscle trauma where HO forms. J Orthop Res. 2011 Mar 30. doi: 10.1002/jor.21354. [Epub ahead of print] PDF