The effect of repeated freeze-thaw cycles on human muscle tissue visualized by postmortem computed tomography (PMCT)

The aim of this study was to determine whether effects of repetitive freeze-thaw cycles, with various thawing temperatures, on human muscle tissue can be quantified using postmortem computed tomography (PMCT) technology. An additional objective was to determine the preferred thawing temperature for muscle tissue in this study. Human cadaver upper extremities were divided into two different thawing temperature groups and underwent a series of four freeze-thaw cycles in total. Axial CT scans were performed after each cycle. CT attenuation (in Hounsfield units, HU) was measured in four muscles of the upper extremities. HU values changed significantly with the introduction of each subsequent freeze-thaw cycle. Moreover, the changes in HU values were different for each thawing group. There was a significant increase of HU values in both groups between t₀ and t₁. Unfrozen tissue showed large variation of HU values in all samples. It was possible to distinguish between samples thawed at different thawing temperatures based on their respective HU values. It is advisable to keep the number of freeze-thaw cycles to just one, if the human cadaveric tissue is to be used for educational purposes. The preferred thawing temperature in this study is 2°C. Clin. Anat. 30:799–804, 2017.