Treatment of avulsion injury of three fingers with a compound thoracodorsal artery perforator flap including serratus anterior fascia

Complete degloving injury of three digits not amenable to revascularization may leave poor cosmetic and functional results. We used a compound thoracodorsal artery perforator (TDAP) flap in a 34‐year‐old, right‐handed, male worker with traumatic degloving injury. The flap consisted of a thin nonbulky skin component isolated on two perforators in combination with serratus fascia, both pedicled on the thoracodorsal vessels. The mobility of the two flap components allowed the palmar and dorsal part of the fingers to be reconstructed without relying on multiple flaps or anastomoses. The skin component of the TDAP flap was transferred to the palmar defect, the serratus fascia flap to the dorsal part of the fingers and sutured loosely. Coverage of the serratus anterior fascia was done with split‐thickness skin graft. Both components of the flap survived completely. One month after the first operation, the surgical syndactyly between middle and ring finger was separated, one month later the syndactyly between the ring and little finger. Good coverage of the soft tissue defects with good function could be achieved. There were no donor‐site problems. Therefore, we consider the compound TDAP flap as a useful method that provides functional and cosmeticcoverage of severe avulsion injury of multiple digits. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. Microsurgery, 2009.     

A new option for autologous anterior chest wall reconstruction: the composite thoracodorsal artery perforator flap

Sternal chondrosarcoma is rare and often requires total or subtotal sternectomy. The authors describe the case of a 70-year-old man with sternoclavicular joint chondrosarcoma who underwent subtotal sternectomy with partial resection of the two clavicles and anterior arches of first to third right ribs. Anterior chest wall reconstruction was performed with a composite thoracodorsal artery perforator free flap with sixth and seventh ribs vascularized on serratus muscle. The postoperative course was uneventful. Seven months after surgery, the patient was doing well. This surgical procedure is a new option for autologous reconstruction without prosthetic material after extensive sternectomy.     

携带少量肌袖的胸背动脉穿支皮瓣的临床应用

目的 探讨携带少量肌袖的胸背动脉穿支皮瓣修复缺损创面的手术方法及临床效果.方法 自2005年3月至2009年12月,应用携带少量肌袖的游离胸背动脉穿支皮瓣修复10例皮肤缺损患者,其中头颈部肿瘤切除术后皮肤缺损者3例,四肢部位皮肤缺损者7例.在游离皮瓣过程中,将胸背神经和大部分背阔肌留存于供区.根据创面缺损情况设计携带穿支血管处的少量背阔肌肌袖的胸背动脉穿支皮瓣,皮瓣大小为4.5 cm×7.0 cm～6.5 cm×12.0 cm.供区直接拉拢缝合.结果 术后随访10例患者2～41个月,游离移植的皮瓣成活良好,缺损修复后其外形较满意;供区余留的背阔肌其收缩功能仍存在,切口愈合良好.结论 该术式中保留的部分背阔肌肌袖,既有利于保护穿支皮瓣,又可改善皮瓣的臃肿外形;保留了胸背神经和大部分背阔肌,使供区损伤较小,符合皮瓣切取原则.     

Use of thoracodorsal artery perforator flap for soft tissue reconstruction in children

Perforator free flap (PFF) is now performed with increasing frequency for soft tissue reconstruction in adults. When compared with conventional free skin flaps, PFFs are thinner and have less donor-site morbidity because only the skin is harvested. The advancement of the PFF design has spurred the identification of many skin flaps based on the perforator principle. Although PFFs are used in adults, most reconstructive surgeons still hesitate to perform PFFs in children. The main cause of concern is the perceived high failure rate related to the small diameter of children's perforator vessels. We present 4 consecutive cases of successful transfer of thoracodorsal artery perforator flap in children. We present our flap design and surgical technique to highlight the usefulness of this flap for reconstructing soft tissue defects in children.     

Free thoracodorsal artery perforator flap in extremity reconstruction: 12 cases.

The need for thin flap coverage has increased, especially for contouring or covering shallow defects of extremities. The free thoracodorsal artery perforator flap harvested from the upper lateral back can be useful for this purpose. The thoracodorsal artery supplies the latissimus dorsi muscle and supplies perforating branches to the overlying skin. The flap is based upon the proximal perforator of the thoracodorsal artery, which usually emerges in an area approximately 8-10 cm below the posterior axillary fold and 2-3 cm posterior to the lateral border of the latissimus dorsi muscle. Between February of 2001 and April of 2003, we used the free thoracodorsal artery perforator flap for distal limbs reconstruction in 12 clinical cases, including three hands, two forearms and seven feet. The soft tissue defects resulted from trauma, scar release, chronic ulcer, or tumour ablation. The main advantages of the thoracodorsal artery perforator flap are that it contains no muscle, allowing more reconstructive precision, and morbidity is minimised by preserving the function of the latissimus dorsi muscle and hiding the donor scar. However, meticulous intra-muscular retrograde dissection of the perforator, to the thoracodorsal artery, is necessary in order to obtain suitable pedicle length and vessel diameter. The authors conclude that the free thoracodorsal artery perforator flap has greater potential for resurfacing large defects of distal limbs, because of its suitable thickness and hidden donor site.     

A novel reconstruction of 2 distinct defects: concomitant use of a thoracodorsal artery perforator flap and its corresponding muscle flap

A perforator flap completely spares the underlying muscle, so the muscle tissue can now be used as a second flap for the reconstruction of another defect after the harvest of the overlying perforator flap as long as sufficient nutritive branches to the muscle remain. The authors describe here the creation of 2 independent free flaps from a single donor site, the latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous unit. The 2 flaps, thoracodorsal artery perforator and its corresponding muscle flap, were created and transferred to 2 distinct defects. Using this technique, we could avoid creation of double donor sites and so minimize the donor morbidity to that associated with the traditional single musculocutaneous flap. This technique was employed by us for treating 2 patients who presented with 2 separate defects.     

Use of the thoracodorsal artery perforator (TDAP) flap with implant in breast reconstruction

The latissimus dorsi (LD) musculocutaneous flap with implant has been widely used for breast reconstruction. This technique, which is safe and reliable, results in the sacrifice of the largest muscle in the body with high seroma incidence in the donor site. The thoracodorsal artery perforator (TDAP) flap spares the LD muscle. However, the TDAP has never been used together with implant for breast reconstruction. We present our strategies in sparing the LD muscle by using the TDAP flap with an implant beneath. The perforator was always mapped preoperatively. The TDAP flap was designed with the perforator located at the proximal part. Modifications to the flap should be done when multiple small perforators are found or when the perforator enters the subcutaneous tissue in the middle of the flap. A small segment of the muscle is included in the flap behind the perforator (LD-muscle sparing TDAP type I) to protect perforator compression by the implant. In very thin patients, a larger segment of the LD is needed to cover the implant (LD muscle-sparing TDAP type II). In both situations, the rest of the LD muscle is spared with its motor innervation. We present 4 patients who underwent a TDAP flap with implant for breast reconstruction. The flaps were transferred successfully. No seroma formation occurred. Combining a TDAP flap with an implant is feasible. Perforator mapping with correct flap design is the keystone in this technique. Reducing donor site morbidity and seroma rate are the ultimate goals of this technique. The TDAP flap should be modified to an LD muscle-sparing version in any case of unfavorable anatomic or clinical situations.     

Versatility of the pedicled thoracodorsal artery perforator (TDAP) flap in soft tissue reconstruction

For the last decades, the latissimus dorsi skin-muscle flap has contributed to the efficient reconstruction of the loss of skin cover (especially in breast surgery) and in long-distance tissue defects. Unfortunately, the nonuse of such an important muscle as the latissimus dorsi for the patient, as well as the resulting thickness of the flap after reconstruction, has turned it into a second choice flap. However, this flap is still indicated in the reconstruction of areas which need a great amount of cutaneous and muscular tissue. The appearance of the perforator flaps and, specifically, thoracodorsal artery perforator (TDAP) flap, has meant a radical change in relation to lower morbidity of the donor site, thus highly ranking the use of these flaps in the reconstruction for similar defects. The aim of this publication is to present our experience with the pedicled TDAP flap in a series of 17 different cases. Of those, there were 14 cases of mammary reconstruction after sparing surgery, 2 cases of axillary reconstruction following severe recurrent hidradenitis, and a case of extensive substance loss in a patient's upper limb following a severe crush injury.     

Perineoscrotal reconstruction using a medial circumflex femoral artery perforator flap

Major scrotal defects may result from infection due to Fournier's gangrene, excision of scrotal skin diseases, traumatic avulsion of scrotal and penile skin, and genital burns. The wide spectrum of bacterial flora of the perineum, difficulty in providing immobilisation, and obtaining a natural contour of the testes make testicular cover very difficult. Various methods have been reported to cover the penoscrotal area, including skin grafting, transposing them to medial thigh skin, and use of local fasciocutaneous or musculocutaneous flaps. In this report, reconstruction using six local medial circumflex femoral artery perforator (MCFAP) flaps was undertaken in five male patients (mean age, 47 years) with complex penoscrotal or perineal wounds. The cause of the wounds in four patients was Fournier's gangrene, and was a wide papillomateous lesion in the other patient. Flap width was 6-10 cm and flap length was 10-18 cm. The results showed that a MCFAP flap provided the testes with a pliable local flap without being bulky and also protected the testicle without increasing the temperature. The other advantage of the MCFAP flap was that the donor-site scar could be concealed in the gluteal crease. Our results demonstrated that the MCFAP flap is an ideal local flap for covering penoscrotal defects.     

Correction of temporo-masseteric contour deformity using the dual paddle thoracodorsal artery perforator adiposal flap

In cases of facial asymmetry with denervation atrophy of the masticatory muscles associated with head and neck tumors involving the trigeminal nerve, facial contour depression occurs selectively over the temple and masseteric area, separated by an uninvolved area over the zygomatic arch. The authors developed a new thoracodorsal artery perforator flap with two separate adiposal paddles based on their own perforators from the same mother vessel, the thoracodorsal vessel. Nearly normal temporo-masseteric contour was achieved in two patients. By freely positioning two adiposal paddles supplied by independent perforators based on the same vessel, separate non-contiguous regions of the face could be reconstructed correctly with one microvascular anastomosis in a single-stage operation, without the need for a secondary procedure to reduce the bulk over the zygomatic arch.