Plastic and reconstructive surgery
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Plast. Reconstr. Surg. · Jan 2005
Case ReportsThe use of anterolateral thigh perforator flaps in chronic osteomyelitis of the lower extremity.
From April of 2000 to May of 2003, 28 consecutive patients with chronic osteomyelitis of the lower extremity underwent surgical debridement and reconstruction with anterolateral thigh perforator flaps (six cases were combined with vastus lateralis muscle flaps). All wounds were open for a minimum period of 6 weeks (average, 24.7 months; range, 6 weeks to 52 months). The average patient age was 42.8 years (range, 18 to 71 years), there were 21 male and seven female patients, and the average follow-up period was 18.2 months (range, 5 to 41 months). ⋯ No debulking procedure was necessary in any case. Although the muscle flap is known to provide superior vascular supply, the type of flap used for coverage seems to be less critical in the final outcome, provided that total debridement and obliteration of dead spaces are achieved. A well-vascularized anterolateral thigh perforator flap was successfully used to combat infection and bring stability to wounds with chronic osteomyelitis.
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Plast. Reconstr. Surg. · Jan 2005
Axial pattern composite prefabrication of high-density porous polyethylene: experimental and clinical research.
Currently, various alloplastic materials are being used for reconstruction of three-dimensional structures, and high-density porous polyethylene is so far the best and the most commonly used material. Various indications for high-density porous polyethylene have been defined for closure of craniofacial defects, correction of congenital anomalies, and aesthetic augmentations. A common property of various studies published so far is that after being fixed to the bone or underlying structures, high-density porous polyethylene has been covered primarily or by skin flaps. ⋯ High-density porous polyethylene has been prefabricated and directly grafted for the very first time on a clinical basis. No serious complications have been observed, except for minimal graft loss in two patients. It is obvious that full-thickness skin grafts that are thinner than flaps will adapt better to the fine details of high-density porous polyethylene and will highly increase the detail obtained in the reconstruction of three-dimensional defects.