Objective
To evaluate the effectiveness of anterolateral thigh and groin conjoined flap in emergent repair of ultra-long complex tissue defects in forearm and hand.
Methods
Between February 2009 and October 2011, 6 patients with complex tissue defect of dorsal forearm and hand were in adminsion. There were 5 male and 1 female with an average age of 38.5 years (range, 32-47 years). Injury reasons included machine injury in 5 cases and traffic accident injury in 1 case. Injury to admission time was from 3 to 16 hours (mean, 6 hours). All case were single limb injury, including right forearm and hand injury in 4 cases and left forearm and hand injury in 2 cases. The wound area was from 36 cm × 9 cm to 48 cm × 12 cm. The type of associated injury included elbow dislocation associated with open injury in 2 cases; fractures of the radial, ulnar, and metacarpal bone in 4 cases; defects of wrist dorsal skin and extensor tendons of fingers and wrist in 5 cases; and defects of ulnar artery and ulnar nerve in 1 case. The anterolateral thigh and groin conjoined free flaps were used to repair defects in the forearm and hand in emergency. The area of flap was from 36 cm × 9 cm to 48 cm × 12 cm. Meanwhile the partial functional reconstruction was performed. The donor site was repaired by skin grafts.
Results
The anastomotic embolization of vascular pedicle and arteria interossea dorsalis occurred in 1 case, purulent secretion under the flap in 1 case, which were cured after symptomatic treatment; the skin flaps completely survived, and primary healing of the wounds were obtained in the other cases. The donor skin grafts survived in 2 cases, and partial necrosis of the skin graft of lower abdominal occurred in 4 cases, and healed after changing dressing. All of the 6 patients were followed up 3 to 18 months (mean, 10 months). The appearance and texture of the flaps were good. The protective sensation was recovered in 2 cases followed up for more than 14 months; no sensory recovery was observed in the other cases. At last follow-up, according to the upper extremity functional evaluation standard by Hand Surgery Branch of Chinese Medical Association, the results were excellent in 1 case, good in 4 cases, and poor in 1 case, and the excellent and good rate was 83.3%.
Conclusion
It could get a good short-term effectiveness to use the anterolateral thigh and groin conjoined flap for emergent repair of the ultra-long and complex tissue defects in forearm and hand.
ObjectiveTo investigate the surgical methods and effectiveness to use the iliac flap combined with anterolateral thigh flap for repair of the first metatarsal bone and large skin defect.
MethodsBetween January 2013 and January 2016, iliac flap combined with anterolateral thigh flap was used to repair the first metatarsal bone and large skin defect in 9 patients. There were 5 males and 4 females, with a median age of 15 years (range, 10 to 60 years). The causes included traffic accident injury in 6 cases and crush injury of machine in 3 cases. The average time from injury to operation was 3 hours to 14 days (mean, 7 days). The size of skin soft tissue defect ranged from 10 cm×6 cm to 20 cm×10 cm. The size of first metatarsal bone defect ranged from 2 cm×1 cm to 5 cm×1 cm. The size of iliac flap was 3.0 cm×1.5 cm to 6.0 cm×1.5 cm, and the size of anterolateral thigh flap was 10 cm×6 cm to 20 cm×10 cm. The donor site was directly sutured or repaired by free skin graft.
ResultsAfter operation, the composite flaps survived with primary healing of wound; the skin grafts at donor site survived and the incision healed by first intention. All patients were followed up 6 months to 2 years (mean, 1.6 years). X-ray examination showed that the bone healing time was 3.5-5.0 months (mean, 4 months). The flap had soft texture, good color and appearance. All patients could normally walk. According to the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) standard, the foot function was excellent in 6 cases and good in 3 cases, and the excellent and good rate was 100% at last follow-up.
ConclusionThe iliac flap combined with anterolateral thigh flap for repair of the first metatarsal bone and large skin defect is a practical way with good shape at one stage.
Objective To introduce the application of the pedicled anterolateral thigh flap transferring for coverage of the oversized skin defect of the hand. Methods The pedicled anterolateral thigh flap was transferred to cover the large skin defects of the hands or the skin defects of theabdomen after the abdominal flap transferred to the hand in 5 male patients aged 16-44 years from April 2002 to August 2005. The injured sites were as follows:4 right hands and 1 left hand, including 2 hands injured by a machine and 3 hands injured by burning.The mechanically injured patients underwent an operation within 6 hours after the injury. The burned patients were reconstructed by the flap transferring 4-7 days after the burn when the decayed tissues could be clearly indentified.The areas of the hand defects were 12.19 cm×18.22 cm.The areas of the pedicled anterolateral thigh flaps were 7.12 cm×16.24 cm. The areas of the abdominal flaps were 13.20 cm×19.23 cm.The pedicles were separated 3 weeks after the repairing operation. Results All the flaps survived well and there was no vascular crisis, with the wound healing of the first intention. The skin defects of the hand were covered completely. Five patients were followed up for 6-12 months. The texture of the flaps was soft and the flaps had a good blood circulation. Of the patients, 3 underwent the finger exclusion and degreasing operation 47 months after operation. All the flaps of the hands had protective sensation, which could meet the requirement of the daily life. Conclusion The pedicled anterolateral thigh flap can provide the large coverage for the skin defects of the hands. The risk of the operation can be greatly decreased by obviation of the vessel anastomosis. It can be an optimal choice for themanagement of the oversized skin defects of the hands.
Objective To investigate the donor-site compl ications of the anterolateral thigh flap and its influencing factors. Methods Between July 1988 and July 2007, 427 patients were treated with anterolateral thigh flap. Among them, 33 patients had postoperative donor-site compl ications and their cl inical data were analyzed retrospectively. There were 21 malesand 12 females aged 14-47 years old (average 32.7 years old). The size of the wound defect ranged from 16 cm × 7 cm to 28 cm × 13 cm. The area of the flap harvested during operation ranged from 16 cm × 7 cm to 30 cm × 13 cm. The donor sites were treated by direct suture in 7 cases; free spl it-thickness skin graft in 23 cases, and reverse superficial epigastric artery flap repair in 3 cases. The size of graft in the donor site ranged from 10 cm × 5 cm to 18 cm × 8 cm. The occurrence of short-term (within 4 weeks) and long-term (over 6 months) compl ications were analyzed. Results All patients were followed up for 8-54 months (average 21 months). There were 26 patients (78.8%) with short-term and long-term compl ications and 7 patients (21.2%) with long-term compl ications. The short-term compl ications included skin graft necrosis in 23 cases (69.7%), wound infection in 17 cases (51.5%), and muscle necrosis in 2 cases (6.1%). The long-term compl ications included non-heal ing wounds in 21 cases (63.6%), serious scar in 28 cases (84.8%), discomfort in 25 cases (75.8%), and dysfunction of the quadriceps femoris in 16 cases (48.5%). Conclusion The occurrence of anterolateral thigh flap donor-site compl ications is related to the anatomical structure of the anterolateral thigh region, the surgical procedure, and the patient’s physique.
Objective
To investigate the effectiveness of high frequency color Doppler ultrasound for detecting perforators in the anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap surgery.
Methods
Between February 2011 and July 2012, 8 patients underwent high frequency color Doppler ultrasound to detect the perforator anatomy before ALT flap surgery. There were 5 males and 3 females, aged 21-46 years (mean, 34 years). Defects were caused by excision of squamous cell carcinoma in 2 cases, by scalp avulsion in 2 cases, by soft tissue necrosis after neck trauma in 1 case, by excision of groin fibrosarcoma in 1 case, by excision of groin melanoma in 1 case, and by malformation of the face in 1 case. The defect size varied from 12 cm × 7 cm to 22 cm × 18 cm. The perforator with wider caliber, faster flow speed, and shorter intramuscular trajectory was selected, and the flap was designed according to the observed results, which size varied from 14 cm × 9 cm to 25 cm × 20 cm. The donnor sites were repaired by free skin graft.
Results
Totally, 19 perforators in the flap area were detected by high frequency color Doppler ultrasound, and 18 were identified during operation, with an accuracy rate of 94.7%. The point going out muscle, the travel and direction of perforators observed during operation were basically in accordance with those detected by high frequency color Doppler ultrasound. The other flaps survived, and obtained healing by first intention except 1 flap which had partial fat necrosis with healing by second intention. The skin graft at donor site survived. All patients followed up 4-16 months (mean, 8 months). The flaps had good color and texture.
Conclusion
High frequency color Doppler ultrasound is a valuable imaging modality for the preoperative assessment of the vascular supply for ALT flap.
Objective To introduce the technique and clinical application of free lobed anteromedial thigh perforator flap. MethodsBetween October 2017 and December 2021, 65 patients with buccal and oral cancer penetrating defects were planned to treat with free lobed anterolateral thigh flap transplantation, of which 15 cases were found that the sole anterolateral thigh perforator was actually a branch of the anteromedial thigh perforator, and then the free lobed anteromedial thigh perforator flap was harvested for repair. There were 12 males and 3 females with an average age of 34.6 years (range, 29-55 years). According to Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) TNM staging, there were 7 cases of T4N0M0, 4 cases of T4N1M0, 2 cases of T3N1M0, and 2 cases of T3N2M0. The disease duration was 1-10 months (mean, 6.3 months), and the area of secondary soft tissue defect left after radical resection of buccal and oral cancer was from 5 cm×4 cm to 10 cm×6 cm. The anterolateral thigh skin flap ranged from 5 cm×4 cm to 13 cm×6 cm, and the anteromedial thigh skin flap ranged from 5 cm×3 cm to 10 cm×6 cm. The free trilobed anteromedial thigh flap was prepared according to the actual branches of the main trunk of the anteromedial thigh perforator in 4 cases, and the vastus medialis muscle flap was used to fill the cavity defect of the floor of mouth in 7 cases. Among the 15 patients, the vessel pedicles of the anteromedial thigh perforators were derived from the main femoral artery and vein in 8 cases, from the main descending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex artery in 4 cases, and from the main lateral femoral circumflex artery in 3 cases. Results Hematoma occurred in 2 cases after operation, which was successfully saved after emergency exploration. No vascular crisis occurred, and partial necrosis of anterolateral femoral skin island occurred in 1 case, which was healed with debridement. The remaining flaps survived successfully, and the wounds and donor site incisions healed by first intention. All the patients were followed up 12-36 months (mean, 14.6 months). The appearance of the flap was satisfactory, and no obvious swelling was found; the mouth opening and language function were satisfactory; only linear scar was left in the donor area, and the thigh function was not significantly affected. Local recurrence occurred in 3 cases, and the defect after tumor resection was repaired with pedicled pectoralis major myocutaneous flap. Four patients with neck lymph node metastasis, including ipsilateral side in 3 patients and contralateral side in the other 1 patient, all underwent neck lymph node dissection again. The 3-year survival rate was 86.7% (13/15). Conclusion The anteromedial thigh perforator vessels distributed in the anterolateral region of the thigh can be used to prepare the anterolateral thigh split lobed flap to repair the buccal and oral cancer penetrating defects.
ObjectiveTo discuss the effectiveness of free anterolateral thigh flap pedicled with medial sural vessels for treatment of leg skin and soft tissue defects.
MethodsBetween July 2008 and January 2014, 32 cases of serious skin and soft tissue defects in the leg were repaired by using free anterolateral thigh flap pedicled with medial sural artery and vein. Of them, there were 22 males and 10 females, aged 23 to 50 years (mean, 36.5 years). Defects were caused by traffic accidents injury in 9 cases, crash injury of heavy object in 15 cases, and machine twist injury in 8 cases. The left side was involved in 10 cases and the right side in 22 cases. The mean interval of injury and admission was 2.5 hours (range, 1-4 hours). The location was the upper, middle, and lower one third of the anterior tibia in 15 cases, 10 cases, and 7 cases respectively. The area of defect ranged from 10 cm×5 cm to 23 cm×9 cm. After debridement and vaccum sealing drainage treatment, the anterolateral thigh flap ranging from 12 cm×7 cm to 25 cm×11 cm pedicled with the medial sural vessels was used to repair the wound. The donor site was sutured directly or repaired with the skingrafts.
ResultsAll flaps and skingrafts survived after operation, and primary healing of wound was obtained. After 6-23 months (mean, 14.5 months) follow-up, all flaps were characterized by soft texture, good color, and satisfactory appearance. The sensation of the flaps were recovered to S2~S3+ according to the Britain's Medical Research Council criteria at 6 months after operation. No obvious scar contracture was observed at donor site.
ConclusionThe medial sural artery has the advantages of constant anatomical position, large diameter, rich blood flow, and a long artery pedicle, so the medial sural vessels is an ideal choice as recipient vessels for the reconstruction of leg skin and soft tissue defect.
ObjectiveTo summarize the combination methods and optimization strategies of the harvest procedure of anterolateral thigh chimeric perforator myocutaneous flap. MethodsA clinical data of 359 cases of oral cancer admitted between June 2015 and December 2021 was retrospectively analyzed. There were 338 males and 21 females with an average age of 35.7 years (range, 28-59 years). There were 161 cases of tongue cancer, 132 cases of gingival cancer, and 66 cases of buccal and oral cancer. According to the Union International Center of Cancer (UICC) TNM staging, there were 137 cases of T4N0M0, 166 cases of T4N1M0, 43 cases of T3N1M0, 13 cases of T3N2M0. The disease duration was 1-12 months (mean, 6.3 months). The soft tissue defects in size of 5.0 cm×4.0 cm to 10.0 cm×7.5 cm remained after radical resection were repaired with the free anterolateral thigh chimeric perforator myocutaneous flaps. The process of harvesting the myocutaneous flap was mainly divided into 4 steps. Step 1: exposing and separating the perforator vessels, which mainly came from the oblique branch and the lateral branch of the descending branch. Step 2: isolating the main trunk of the perforator vessel pedicle and determining the origin of the vascular pedicle of muscle flap, which was came from oblique branch, lateral branch of the descending branch, or medial branch of the descending branch. Step 3: determining the source of muscle flap, including lateral thigh muscle and rectus femoris muscle. Step 4: determining the harvest form of muscle flap, which included muscle branch type, main trunk distal type, and main trunk lateral type. Results The 359 free anterolateral thigh chimeric perforator myocutaneous flaps were harvested. In all cases, the anterolateral femoral perforator vessels existed. The perforator vascular pedicle of the flap came from the oblique branch in 127 cases and the lateral branch of the descending branch in 232 cases. The vascular pedicle of muscle flap originated from the oblique branch in 94 cases, the lateral branch of the descending branch in 187 cases, and the medial branch of the descending branch in 78 cases. The muscle flaps harvested from the lateral thigh muscle in 308 cases and the rectus femoris muscle in 51 cases. The harvest forms of muscle flaps included 154 cases of muscle branch type, 78 cases of main trunk distal type, and 127 cases of main trunk lateral type. The size of skin flaps ranged from 6.0 cm×4.0 cm to 16.0 cm×8.0 cm, and the size of muscle flaps range from 5.0 cm×4.0 cm to 9.0 cm×6.0 cm. In 316 cases, the perforating artery anastomosed with the superior thyroid artery, and the accompanying vein anastomosed with the superior thyroid vein. In 43 cases, the perforating artery anastomosed with the facial artery, and the accompanying vein anastomosed with the facial vein. After operation, the hematoma occurred in 6 cases and vascular crisis in 4 cases. Among them, 7 cases were successfully saved after emergency exploration, 1 case had partial necrosis of skin flap, which was healed after conservative dressing change, and 2 cases had complete necrosis of skin flap, which was repaired by pectoralis major myocutaneous flap. All patients were followed up 10-56 months (mean, 22.5 months). The appearance of the flap was satisfactory, and the swallowing and language functions were restored satisfactorily. Only linear scar left in the donor site with no significant effect on thigh function. During follow-up, 23 patients had local tumor recurrence and 16 patients had cervical lymph node metastasis. The 3-year survival rate was 38.2% (137/359). Conclusion The flexible and clear classification of the key points in the harvest process of anterolateral thigh chimeric perforator myocutaneous flap can optimize the protocol to the greatest extent, increase the safety of the operation, and reduce the difficulty of the operation.
ObjectiveTo investigate the effectiveness of selectively thinning of the free anterolateral thigh flap in repair of the heel skin and soft tissue defect.MethodsBetween April 2013 and August 2015, 8 patients with tissue defect of heel caused by different reasons were recruited. There were 6 males and 2 females with an average age of 31.2 years (range, 15-49 years). The size of wound ranged from 14 cm×10 cm to 19 cm×14 cm. All the wounds were repaired with the contralateral free anterolateral thigh flap. The partial flap which was going to repair the defects of the heel and non-weight-bearing area of planta pedis was selectively thinned. The size of flap ranged from 14 cm×10 cm to 19 cm×14 cm. The donate site was repaired by skin grafting.ResultsAll flaps survived after operation, and wounds healed by first intention. The marginal necrosis of skin graft occurred in 2 cases, and healed after changing the dressing. The other skin grafts survived. All patients were followed up 8-20 months (mean, 12.3 months). All patients could walk normally. During follow-up, 2 flaps were injured and cured after symptomatic management. The appearance of flap was good in 7 cases with no influence in wearing shoes. Only 1 patient received the second-stage surgery of thinning the flap after 1 year.ConclusionApplication of the selectively thinning of the free anterolateral thigh flap can repair the heel skin and soft tissue defects, and achieve an ideal appearance and function.
Objective To discuss different applications ofanterolateral thigh flap in repairing large skinsoft tissue defects. Methods From January 1997 to July 2004, 27 pitients with large-complex tissue defects were treated using anterolateral thigh flap. The tissue defect was located at face in 9 cases,at cervix in 4 cases, at lower limbs in 6 cases, at vulvae in 4 cases,at hip in 1 case, at groin in 1 case and at breast tissue in 2 cases. The defect area was from 9 cm×8 cm to 20 cm×15 cm and the flap was harvested from 10 cm×8 cm to 33 cm×15 cm. Results Flaps survived in 26 cases after operation, and patients were satisfied with local function and appearance; flap necrosis occurred only in1 case，and the defect was covered with free skin graft after dress exchanges. Twenty-three cases were followed up from 3 months to 2 years. The appearance and the sense of recipient site were similar to the adjacent tissue. No obvious malformation of the donor site was observed. No local recurrence was found in the 6 cases of malignancy during the follow-up from 6 months to 15 months. Conclusion Anterolateral thigh skin flap can provide enough tissue to repair large skinsoft tissue defect,and can be used in different ways. So anterolateral femoral skin flap is an ideal flap in repairing large skinsoft tissue defect.
