• Archives of Reconstructive Microsurgery
• /
• 제10권1호
• /
• pp.55-59
• /
• 2001

The hand is a frequently affected area in high voltage electrical burn injury as an input or output sites. Therefore, early debridement and synchronous flap coverage are generally accepted as a primary treatment of several electrical burns complicated by exposure of tendons, neurovascular structures, and bones. So, in order to establish convenient, promising methods for the reconstruction of hand defects in electrical burn patients, we performed various reverse forearm flaps. From March 1997 to February 2000, we reconstructed 12 cases of hand defects in high voltage electrical burn wounds with reverse forearm flaps. Reverse radial fasciocutaneous flap were 3 cases, reverse ulnar fasciocutaneous flap were 3 cases, reverse ulnar fasciocutaneous flap and STSG were 4 cases, reverse ulnar fascial flap and STSG were 2 cases. We successfully reconstructed hand defects in all 12 cases, and obtained following conclusions. 1 Various reverse forearm flaps provide well vascularized, profitable tissues and they require short operative time with relatively easy procedures. 2. Reverse fascial flap and STSG, reverse fasciocutaneous flap and STSG provide thin flaps with good aesthetics and minor donor site morbidity.

• Archives of Reconstructive Microsurgery
• /
• 제13권1호
• /
• pp.68-73
• /
• 2004

Transverse rectus abdominis muscle (TRAM) free flap is widely used for breast reconstruction, however donor-site morbidities such as abdominal wall weakness, hernia, bulging are troublesome. For the purpose of minimizing donor-site morbidity, there has been a surge in interests in muscle sparing free TRAM flap preserving the anatomy of rectus abdominis muscle, fascia, and motor nerve. The purpose of this study is to investigate complication and morbidity after muscle sparing free TRAM flap. Between August, 1995 and May, 2003, there were 108 cases of muscle sparing free TRAM flap of breast reconstruction. There was no abdominal hernia. There were 4 cases of dog ear, 3 cases of marginal necrosis of apron flap, 2 cases of asymmetry of umbilicus. At 1 year after operation, most patients feel comfortness in physical exercise. Muscle sparing free TRAM flap provides ample amount of well vascularized soft tissue with small inclusion of rectus abdominis muscle and fascia. Also it minimizes donor-site morbidity with rapid recovery of abdominal strength.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제34권5호
• /
• pp.562-568
• /
• 2007

Purpose: Many studies reported anatomy of posterior tibial artery perforator. But, it is not easy to use this flap in clinical case. Methods: Authors performed cadaver dissection on 26 legs from 13 cadavers and identified the number, location, type, length and diameter of perforator. Based on anatomic study, posterior tibial artery perforator flap was performed on 3 clinical cases. Results: The perforator was found on a line drawn from the medial boarder of central patella to posterior boarder of medial malleolus. The main perforator which was longer and greater caliber than others was found was found 13 to 17cm distant from medial boarder of central patella in 23 of 26 leg(88.5%). Average length was 6.2cm and average diameter was 1.4mm. The main perforator was musculocutaneous perforator at 20 of 26 leg(77%). The posterior tibial artery perforator flap was clinically use in 3 cases. All flap were survived without any complication. Conclusion: The author found the main perforator of posterior tibial artery perforator flap was located 15cm distant from medial boarder of central patella within the circle drawn with a radius of 4cm. The posterior tibial artery perforator flap is expected to be used as one of the option for the reconstruction of hand and foot.

• Archives of Reconstructive Microsurgery
• /
• 제21권2호
• /
• pp.153-158
• /
• 2012

Purpose: The first web space of the foot has a similar thickness and skin texture of the pulp of the fingers. Moreover, it has a reliable blood vessel and sensory nerve. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical results of the first web space free flap to reconstruct the pulp of fingers. Materials and Methods: Authors have performed 23 cases of first web space free flap to reconstruct the pulp defect of the fingers between June 2004 and May 2009. The age of the patients ranged from 20 years old to 55 years old. The size of the flap ranged from $1{\times}1.5cm$ to $8.5{\times}2.5cm$. The mean flap area was 5.4 cm2. In 4 cases, we elevated the flap including lateral aspect of the big toe and medial aspect of the second toe. And then we made an artificial syndactyly to reconstruct the pulps on two fingers at the same time. In all cases, we performed 1 digital artery and 1 dorsal vein anastomosis. Every donor site that had a small defect healed spontaneously without any additional operations to cover it. Results: Of this type of surgery 21 flaps (91.3%) survived, 2 flaps (8.7%) failed. There was no severe complication in the donor sites. There was no walking disturbance due to the skin defect of the donor site. The static 2 point discrimination in 11 cases that we could check ranged from 3 mm to 15 mm. Conclusion: The authors believe that the first web space free flap of the foot is a good option for the reconstruction of the pulp of the fingers and it has a minimal donor site morbidity.

• Maxillofacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• /
• 제35권4호
• /
• pp.248-255
• /
• 2013

Reconstruction techniques of orofacial defects caused by wide excision of the intraoral malignant lesions are various. Although radial forearm free flap is a common donor site on reconstruction of soft tissue defect, anterolateral thigh (ALT) free flap also has an established site in orofacial soft tissue reconstruction as the favored donor flap with recent progress of the microsurgical technique. A 59-year-old female complained of hyperplastic mass on the right retromolar and buccal cheek, which was diagnosed as a squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) by an incisional biopsy. Before the operation, we planned a wide excision of the SCC lesion, supraomohyoid neck dissection, reconstruction with radial forearm free flap (RFFF), and split thickness skin graft. We accidentally found an arterial variation of the forearm area during elevation of RFFF, and changed the plan of reconstruction operation to reconstruction with ALT free flap. Operative sites was healed well during the post-operative period, and we referred to the department of radiation oncology for post-operative radiotherapy.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제33권3호
• /
• pp.276-282
• /
• 2006

The anterolateral thigh(ALT) flap has been known as a very versatile and reliable flap. We report our experiences with the anterolateral thigh flap for the postoncologic reconstruction of head and neck region from April 2002 to March 2005. A total of 38 subjects (M: F=30:8, mean age:53.8 years) were taken. We reviewed primary site of tumors, size and thickness of flaps, location and number of perforators, course of perforators, length of pedicle, and postoperative complications. The mean flap size, thickness and pedicle length were $11.8{\times}6.4cm$, 1.1 cm and 12.2 cm, respectively. We classified the pedicles based on the authors' criteria. Type I, pedicle with short intramuscular course, was with 29 cases(72.5%), type II, pedicle with long intramuscular course, with 6 cases(15%), type III, pedicle with septocutaneous course, with 3 cases(7.5%), and type IV, clinically unavailable pedicle, with 2 cases (5%). We experienced 1 case of partial and 1 case of total flap loss. There was 1 case of donor site wound dehiscence, which was treated by debridement and closure. According to the defect, efficient adjustment of the size and thickness of flap was possible, and favorable functional and aesthetic results have been obtained in our study. Our experience confirmed the versatility and usefulness of the anterolateral thigh flap for various reconstructions in head and neck region.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제39권5호
• /
• pp.522-527
• /
• 2012

Background A pectoralis major flap is one of the standard tools for the reconstruction of defects of the head and neck. Despite the technical advancement in free tissue transfer in head and neck reconstruction, the benefits of a pectoralis major flap should not be overlooked. The purpose of this study is to evaluate our 17 years of experience in reconstructing defects of the head and neck region using the pectoralis major flap. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 112 patients (120 cases) who underwent pectoralis major flap operations for head and neck reconstruction during a period ranging from 1994 to 2010. Results In our series, no total necrosis of the flap occurred. Of the total cases, 30.8% presented with flap-related complications. Major complications occurred in 20% of all of the cases but were then all successfully treated. The male sex was correlated with the occurrence of overall complications (P=0.020) and major complications (P=0.007). Preoperative albumin levels of <3.8 g/dL were correlated with the formation of fistula (P=0.030). Defects of the hypopharynx were correlated with the occurrence of major complications (P=0.019) and the formation of fistula (P=0.012). Secondary reconstructions were correlated with the occurrence of overall complications (P=0.013) and the formation of fistula (P=0.030). Conclusions A pectoralis major flap is still considered to be a safe, versatile one-stage reconstruction procedure in the management of the defects of head and neck and the protection of the carotid artery.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제35권2호
• /
• pp.193-196
• /
• 2008

Purpose: TRAM flap reconstruction has settled down as a common method for breast reconstruction after mastectomy. There are a few surgical contraindication in TRAM flap surgery. Previous abdominal liposuction has been a relative contraindication in TRAM flap surgery. The authors present 2 patients of successful breast reconstruction using pedicled TRAM flaps, who previously underwent abdominal liposuction. Methods: Case 1: A 48-year-old woman with a right breast cancer visited for mastectomy and breast reconstruction. Her past surgical history was notable for abdominal liposuction 15 years ago. Skin sparing mastectomy and breast reconstruction with a pedicled TRAM flap was performed. Case 2: A 45-year-old woman with a left breast cancer visited us for mastectomy and autologous breast reconstruction. 3 years ago, she had an abdominal liposuction and augmentation mammaplasty in other hospital. Nipple sparing mastectomy and breast reconstruction was done using pedicled TRAM flap. Results: One year after the reconstruction, partial fat necrosis was developed in one case but there was no skin necrosis or donor site complication in both patients. Conclusion: As aesthetic surgery becomes more popular, increasing numbers of patients who have a prior abdominal liposuction history want for autologous tissue breast reconstruction. In these patients, TRAM flap surgery will be also used for breast reconstruction. But, the warning of fat necrosis and the use of preoperative Doppler tracing to evaluate the abdominal perforator may be beneficial to patients who had abdominal liposuction recently.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제33권1호
• /
• pp.101-106
• /
• 2006

Nipple reconstruction is an important step in breast reconstruction after mastectomy. The authors' preferred reconstructive technique is the local C-V flap in case that a small opposite nipple is not adequate for composite graft. This flap produces an excellent reconstruction, but it is not easy to produce an adequate projection and firmness of the nipple. This article describes the technique and experience in nine patients treated over two years with dermis(scar tissue) graft for nipple reconstruction. This is the first report of application of autologous dermis(scar tissue) grafting to reconstruct a nipple primarily after breast mound reconstruction, decreasing the absorption of the reconstructed nipple and increasing the hardness. The dermis(scar tissue) is taken from scar revision and/or dog-ear correction in the second stage operation after free TRAM flap breast reconstruction. And the dermis(scar tissue) graft is inserted vertically between the local flaps and horizontally under the reconstructed nipple base. Between September 2002 and February 2005, nine patients underwent C-V flap with dermis(scar tissue) graft as a part of their nipple reconstruction. The patient's ages ranged from 28 to 55 years old (mean, 41.1 years old). The follow-up period ranged from 5 to 35 months, with an average of 14.5 months. None of the nipples showed skin flap necrosis or local infection, and uneventful wound healing. Our result showed good nipple projection with less absorption and enough firmness. Our experiences shows that dermis(scar tissue) grafts in C-V flap is a very useful method for nipple reconstruction.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
• /
• 제51권1호
• /
• pp.87-93
• /
• 2024

This study aimed to analyze cases of anterolateral thigh (ALT) free flap used for hand reconstruction with terminal perforator-to-digital artery anastomosis. Patients who underwent ALT free flap placement with terminal perforator-to-digital artery anastomosis for hand reconstruction between January 2011 and August 2021 were included. The number, length, and diameter of the perforators and veins, flap size, and operative time were investigated through a retrospective review of charts and photographs. The occurrences of arterial thrombosis, venous thrombosis, arterial spasm, and flap necrosis were analyzed. In total, 50 patients were included in this study. The mean diameter and length of the perforators were 0.68 mm and 3.25 cm, respectively, and the mean number of veins anastomosed was 1.88, with a mean diameter of 0.54 mm. Complications included four cases of arterial thrombosis, one case of venous thrombosis, seven cases of partial necrosis, and one case of total flap failure. Regression analysis showed that a longer perforator was associated with arterial thrombosis whereas larger flap size and number of anastomosed veins were associated with partial necrosis (p < 0.05). The terminal perforator-to-digital artery anastomosis offers advantages in using compact free flaps with short pedicle lengths to cover small hand defects.