| Title | The versatile anterolateral thigh flap: a musculocutaneous flap in disguise in head and neck reconstruction. | | Author(s) | Demirkan F, Chen HC, Wei FC, Chen HH, Jung SG, Hau SP, Liao CT | | Institution | Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taipei, Taiwan. | | Source | Br J Plast Surg 2000 Jan; 53(1):30-6. | | MeSH | Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Algorithms
Carcinoma, Squamous Cell
Female
Graft Survival
Head and Neck Neoplasms
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Mouth Neoplasms
Reconstructive Surgical Procedures
Surgical Flaps
Thigh
Tissue and Organ Harvesting
| | Abstract | In search of an alternative soft tissue free flap donor site to radial forearm flap and rectus abdominis flap in head and neck reconstruction, we used the anterolateral thigh flap for reconstruction of various defects in the head and neck in 59 patients. The aim was to demonstrate the versatility of this donor site and propose a new approach to achieve a safer flap dissection. With the exception of three cases, all defects resulted from excision of malignant tumours. The defects were categorised as full thickness defects of the mandible (33.9%), full thickness defects of the cheek (52.5%) and others (13.6%). During the flap dissection a direct septocutaneous pedicle was observed in 12% of the cases. In the remaining cases there were only musculocutaneous perforators and the flaps were raised either as a split vastus lateralis musculocutaneous flap (72%) or as a perforator flap (16%), depending on the required thickness. Total flap survival was 96.7% with one total and one partial failure and two re-explorations (3.3%). The mean follow-up time was 7.1 months (range: 1-12 months). In conclusion, the anterolateral thigh flap is a versatile and dependable flap that can be adapted to any type of defect by modifying the flap design and composition. It should be considered to be a musculocutaneous flap of the vastus lateralis muscle that can also be raised as a perforator flap. When harvested and used in this context, the flap dissection becomes very safe and consistent, nullifying the only major disadvantage associated with this donor site. | | Language | eng | | Pub Type(s) | Case Reports
Journal Article
| | PubMed ID | 10657446 |
|
