BACKGROUND Early identification of failing free flaps may allow for potential intervention and flap salvage. The predictive ability of flap temperature monitoring has been previously questioned. The present study investigated the ability of an infrared surface temperature monitoring device to detect trends in flap temperature and correlation with anastomotic thrombosis and flap failure. METHO...

The fingertip skin defect is a common hand injury often accompanied by tendon or bone exposure, and is normally treated with flaps. The aim of this study was to evaluate the functional sensory recovery of random-pattern abdominal skin flap in the repair of fingertip cutaneous deficiency. A total of 23 patients, aged between 18 and 50 years (mean age, 31 years) with fingertip cutaneous deficienc...

BACKGROUND The scapula osteocutaneous free flap is frequently used to reconstruct complex head and neck defects given its tissue versatility. Because of minimal atherosclerotic changes in its vascular pedicle, this flap also may be used as a second choice when other osseous flaps are not available because of vascular disease at a preferred donor site. METHODS We performed a retrospective char...

A popular strategy in the treatment of articular cartilage lesions involves the introduction of cell suspensions into the defect void and its closure with a periosteal flap (autologous chondrocyte transplantation technique). We applied this methodology in goats and discovered that all sutured flaps (n = 6 animals) became detached from nonimmobilized joints during the recovery period. The purpos...

BACKGROUND: Dermatologic surgeons routinely harvest pedicled flaps at distance with an axial or random pattern to repair facial defects. These types of skin flaps are time-consuming and have high economic, social and personal costs. These drawbacks could be avoided with the introduction of a single-step transfer of free flaps to the recipient site, with microvascular anastomosis. OBJECTIVE: To ...

In arterialized venous flaps (AVFs) the venous network is used to revascularize the flap. While the feasibility of AVFs in soft tissues has been reported there is no study on osseous AVFs. In this study we aim to assess the flap survival of osseous AVFs in a pig model. Medial femoral condyle flaps were elevated in 18 pigs. Three groups were created: AVF (n = 6), conventional arterial flap (cAF,...

BACKGROUND There is a paucity of reports in the literature examining the pattern of sensory and autonomic neural recovery of myocutaneous microvascular flaps and skin grafts to the lower limbs after a prolonged period of time. OBJECTIVES To investigate the recovery of sensation and autonomic nerve activity in long-standing split-skin grafts applied to fascial beds and in myocutaneous microvas...

Neurotized fasciocutaneous flaps and split-skin grafted muscle flaps are the most frequently used free flap alternatives for the reconstruction of weight-bearing surfaces of the foot. An objective comparison of the innate characteristics of these two flap types, with respect to long-term stability, has not been possible because sensory reinnervation in the fasciocutaneous flaps has been a confo...

Background and objectives: Perforator flaps, both pedicled and free flaps, are increasingly used in reconstructive surgery. However, the microvascular perfusion pattern within these flaps still remains essentially unknown. It is well known that in random-pattern flaps, flap length correlates directly with the width of the flap base. In perforator flaps, the importance of preserving a skin base ...