A comparison of temporalis transfer and free latissimus dorsi transfer in lower facial reanimation following unilateral longstanding facial palsy

The ultimate goal in the treatment of facial palsy is the restoration of voluntary and spontaneous movement to the paralyzed side of the face, symmetrical to the normal side. We report our experience treating 40 patients with established facial palsy over a 4-year period. All patients underwent either temporalis transfer or free latissimus dorsi transfer as a single stage to improve lower facial symmetry. We believe that both techniques reliably achieve an increase of movement in facial reanimation after oncological, traumatic, or congenital facial palsy.     

背阔肌节段肌瓣一期修复晚期面瘫的应用解剖

目的 为联合应用背阔肌两块节段肌瓣一期动力矫正晚期面瘫表情肌功能提供解剖学依据.方法 解剖20具10%福尔马林固定的成人尸体共40侧背阔肌标本,醋酸乙酯血管灌注2具新鲜成人尸体共3侧背阔肌标本,观察肌外、肌内神经血管的分布特点.结果 ①92.5%的胸背神经分为内、外侧支;7.5%的胸背神经分为内、中、外侧支.胸背神经内、外侧支分叉点的坐标为(7.94±1.23)em、(3.71±1.68)cm,在该交角的中线区域,神经血管的数量相对较少.②背阔肌外侧肌瓣可以分为3～5个亚单位,内侧肌瓣可以分为2～4个亚单位.③肌内神经血管分支排列关系(由内向外),内侧节段100%为NVAV(神经、静脉、动脉、静脉),外侧节段85.0%为VAVN,其余15.0%为NVAV.④在神经蒂分支点外侧切断,第三段内侧肌瓣神经蒂平均达16 cm,第三或四段外侧肌瓣神经蒂平均达12 cm.结论 吻合血管神经的背阔肌双节段肌瓣移植可一期跨面修复晚期面瘫.     

The treatment of unilateral and bilateral facial palsy using free muscle transfers

A 25-year experience in the treatment of unilateral and bilateral facial palsies is presented. The advent of crossed facial nerve grafts and revascularized muscle grafts gives a high proportion of facial reanimation. The choice for the muscle graft is the pectoralis minor. The latissimus dorsi can be used in unfavorable cirumstances or in bilateral facial palsies. Although recovery of movement is high, the search for refinement and symmetry continues. This article encapsulates the author's philosophy in trying to achieve these goals.     

Postoperative functional evaluation of different reanimation techniques for facial nerve repair

BACKGROUND: The facial nerve function after facial-facial nerve anastomosis, grafting, hypoglossal-facial nerve anastomosis, hypoglossal-facial interpositional jump nerve anastomosis, or a combined approach was analyzed. METHODS: Facial function was assessed after operation using a 7-point visual analog scale (VAS) and by electromyography (EMG) in 53 patients. The final result was judged by May's facial nerve grading system. RESULTS: Voluntary EMG activity occurred on average 4.52 +/- 1.31 months after operation. Initial facial movements were visible after 5.41 +/- 1.80 months. Facial function related to the VAS finally reached 44% of normal value. The result was judged May's grade I in 13%, grade II in 34%, grade III in 28%, and grade IV in 25% of patients. A significant difference in outcome between different reconstruction types was not seen. Age over 60 years was related to worse outcome. CONCLUSIONS: A correct selection of the best method in the individual situation presumed, all analyzed facial reanimation techniques seem to lead nearly similar and satisfactory results.     

吻合血管神经的(足母)展肌移植修复晚期面瘫

目的:探讨和研究治疗晚期面瘫的手术治疗,总结应用以足底内侧动静脉为蒂的(足母)展肌游离移植一期修复晚期面瘫40例效果和经验.方法:选取(足母)展肌为供肌,以足底内侧动静脉及其延续的胫后动静脉为血管蒂,以支配(足母)展肌神经及其延续的足底内侧神经和胫神经为神经蒂.(足母)展肌移植于患侧面部皮下,肌近断固定于口角,远端固定于耳前颧弓,血管神经蒂通过上唇皮下隧道与健侧面动静脉和面神经颊支吻合.结果:经随访一年以上,23例恢复了面部静态对称和理想的下面部随意和不随意运动;8例恢复了面部静态对称和部分下面部随意和不随意运动;9例仅恢复了面部静态对称.结论:(足母)展肌游离移植一期修复晚期面瘫具有疗效好、手术操作简便、肌肉大小适中、血管神经蒂走行位置恒定紧密伴行、血管神经蒂可切取较长、变跨面神经移植和肌肉移植的两期移植为一期移植等优点;而且,神经是血管化移植.     

Free muscle transplantation for treatment of facial palsy

Summary Facial palsy is treated by many different operative procedures. In addition, factors such as the varying degree of paralysis, make postoperative comparisons difficult. The limited number of patients treated by free muscle transplantation at any one center also complicates evaluation of alternative treatments. This limitation has been overcome by development of an International Muscle Transplant Registry for collection, storage and analysis of data from different centers. As of June 1, 1988, 137 patients from 6 countries have been entered into the Registry. Significantly more USA/European patients had a congenital deficit and significantly more Japanese patients had a deficit resulting from surgery. According to a modification of the paresis scoring system proposed by Stennert et al. [3], USA/European patients also had a higher degree of nonsurgical facial paresis than Japanese patients. The most frequent preoperative treatment used in Japan was electrostimulation in 24% of cases, only 6% of European and American patients received this treatment. Evaluation of surgical procedures performed by the 2 groups of surgeons showed similar dimensions of muscle grafts used in the face, with a length of about 8.5 cm and a width of 3.4 cm. The extensor digitorum brevis muscle was the most popular, being used in 58% of European and American cases, whereas the Japanese choice was the gracilis muscle in 94% of cases. The length of the nerve graft used by Japanese surgeons was 6 cm, longer than that used by European and American surgeons. At this time, these preliminary data suggest evidence for paresis improvement in 79% of patients overall. Ultimately, the Registry should permit evaluation of the efficacy of different operative techniques and should influence experimental research and clinical application of muscle transplantation.     

Need for facial reanimation after operations for vestibular schwannoma: patients perspective.

A total of 779 patients operated on for vestibular schwannoma mostly by the translabyrinthine approach in Denmark during the period 1976-2000 answered a questionnaire about various postoperative consequences. In this paper we describe the patients' facial function evaluated by professionals one year postoperatively and self-evaluated by each patient according to the House-Brackmann scale at the time of the questionnaire. The patients' self-evaluation was more pessimistic than that of the professionals with 26% reporting House-Brackmann grade IV-VI, compared with 20%. One hundred and seventeen (15%) of 779 patients considered their facial palsy to be a big problem and 125 patients (16%) were interested in surgical treatment for the sequelae of facial palsy. Seventy-eight (10%) had already had some kind of operation, usually the VII-XII coaptation. Thirty-three of 61 patients who had already been operated on for facial palsy were interested in further surgical treatment. One hundred and ninety-five patients (25%) had some kind of operation on the eye, mostly (88%) a tarsorrhaphy. Reanimation procedures such as a palpebral gold weight or a spring, apparently still have a small place in Denmark. In conclusion, there seem to be a considerable and unmet need for surgical reanimation of facial function in patients with facial palsy after operations for vestibular schwannoma in Denmark.     

Dual innervation of free gracilis muscle for facial reanimation: What we know so far

BackgroundIn the last decade, some institutions have begun combining the CFNG and masseteric nerve to provide dual innervation to the gracilis muscle for dynamic facial reanimation in facial paralysis patients. We reviewed the various ways that these two nerves have been coapted to provide dual innervation, and summarized the functional outcome for these methods.MethodsA search of the Ovid EMBASE, MEDLINE, Cochrane, and Scopus databases was performed from 1946 to May 2019 for dual innervation of gracilis muscle using CFNG plus masseteric nerve for facial reanimation.ResultsA total of 184 articles were identified in the initial search, of which seven met our inclusion criteria. Three additional abstracts with 43 patients were identified but the level of details was not sufficient to include the results in the analysis. A total of 57 patients were reviewed (mean age of 42.1 years (6–79 years)). The majority of dual innervation procedures were performed using the ipsilateral masseteric nerve sutured end-to-end to the obturator nerve, and an additional CFNG connected end-to-side to the obturator nerve. In the 26 patients with Terzis scores available, there were no differences between masseteric nerve coapted end-to-end and CFNG as end-to-side to the obturator, or the reverse coaptation. All but two patients achieved function of the gracilis activated by the masseteric nerve within 2–5 months.ConclusionsThis review shows that dual innervation of the gracilis is safe; and in some cases, does appear to provide early onset gracilis activation as well as an eventual spontaneous smile.     

A modified longitudinally split segmental rectus femoris muscle flap transfer for facial reanimation: anatomic basis and clinical applications.

The present study was conducted to investigate the intra-muscular neurovascular anatomy and the intra-muscular tendon distribution of the rectus femoris muscle to reassess the reliability of technique of harvesting a longitudinally split segmental muscle flap, and to present our clinical experience on usefulness of the longitudinally split segmental rectus femoris muscle flap as a method for reconstruction of the paralysed face in a series of 25 patients. Twenty fresh cadavers were systemically injected with lead oxide, gelatin and water. Based on the anatomy of intra-muscular neurovascular structure in the rectus femoris muscle, 25 consecutive patients with established facial paralysis were treated by using a two-stage method combining neurovascular free-muscle transfer with cross-face nerve grafting. Follow-ups were 15-24 months. All of the 25 patients showed significantly improvement in the appearance of the oral commissure and oral competence. Satisfactory results of facial reanimation were obtained in 23 patients. Among these cases, near-natural facial expression was achieved. Recovery continued up to 2 years postoperatively. There were two cases having poor movement of transferred muscle 2 years postoperatively. No complications occurred in the donor site. In conclusion, the present study has demonstrated the suitability for subdivision of the segment muscle flap of the rectus femoris into two functional units with a common neurovascular pedicle. This series has further demonstrated the safety and reliability of using the rectus femoris muscle flap for facial reanimation.     

Histomorphometric studies in patients with facial palsy treated by functional muscle transplantation: new aspects for the surgical concept

Whenever it was possible, muscle and nerve biopsies were performed in patients with irreversible, unilateral facial palsy treated by cross-face nerve grafting and free gracilis muscle transplantation with microneurovascular anastomoses. Planimetric analyses of cross-sections showed the following, to some extent, surprising, results: (1) Independent of the final functional result, approximately the same number of regenerated, thin nerve fibers (100-200) were found in the distal end of the cross-face nerve graft at the time of muscle transplantation. These are approximately 20% of the nerve fibers counted in the branches of the facial nerve at the healthy side used for reinnervation. (2) There is no correlation between the number or diameter of the nerve fibers in the distal end of the cross-face nerve graft and the functional recovery of the transplanted muscle, but there is good correlation between the morphology of the fibers of the muscle graft and the functional result. (3) Different portions of slow-contracting and fast-contracting muscle fibers in the reinnervated muscle grafts showed the strong influence of the quality of the nerve used for the crossover innervation. If a facial nerve branch innervating the slow buccinator muscle was used, the originally fast gracilis muscle was transformed to a slow muscle by this kind of reinnervation. These important findings are the basis of a new view of surgery in the treatment of irreversible facial palsy by functional free-muscle transplantation.