ObjectiveTo investigate the treatment outcome of applying venous Flow-through flap in the replantation of severed finger with circularity soft tissue defect and vascular defect. MethodsBetween January 2010 and December 2012,11 cases (11 fingers) of severed finger with circularity soft tissue defect and vascular defect underwent replantation with venous Flow-through flaps.There were 8 males and 3 females,aged 18-42 years (mean,24.6 years).The cause of injury was squeeze injury in 6 cases,crush injury in 3 cases,and strangulation in 2 cases.Combined injuries included nerve defect in 3 cases (1.0,2.0,and 3.5 cm in length),and tendon defect in 2 cases (2.0 and 6.5 cm in length); cyclic skin and soft tissue defect was 3.0-4.5 cm in width,was 1/2-1 finger circumference in length,and was 2.0 cm×1.0 cm to 7.0 cm×4.5 cm in size.Six cases had complete circular defect (both finger artery and vein defects),and 5 cases had incomplete circular defect (only finger artery defect),and vascular defect was 1.0-4.5 cm in length.The time from injury to operation was 1.5-4.5 hours. ResultsVenous crisis occurred in 1 case at 2 days after operation,was cured after vein graft; flap edge necrosis was observed in 2 cases and was cured after dressing change and skin grafting respectively; flap edema and blister occurred in 2 cases and relieved spontaneously.The other 6 flaps and replanted fingers survived completely,with primary healing of incision.Ten cases were followed up 12-18 months (mean,15.5 months).Only a linear scar was seen at the donor sites,with no functional limitation.The flaps had similar color and texture to adjacent skin.The two-point discrimination was 6.5-13.0 mm (mean,8.6 mm).According to replanted finger function scoring system of Society of Hand Surgery of Chinese Medical Association,the results were excellent in 6 cases,good in 3 cases,and poor in 1 case at last follow-up,and the excellent and good rate was 90%. ConclusionVenous Flow-through flap can repair both vascular defect and soft tissue defect,so it has good outcome in increasing the survival rate of replanted finger for severed finger replantation with circularity soft tissue defect and vascular defect.
Objective To investigate the feasibility and efficacy of the Flow-through chimeric anterolateral thigh perforator (ALTP) flap for one-stage repair and revascularization in complex defects of the extremities. Methods Between May 2014 and June 2017, 6 patients with soft tissue defects on the limbs combined with dead space, bone defects, or tendon and joint exposure, were reconstructed with the Flow-through chimeric ALTP flap. All 6 patients were male. The patients’ mean age was 44 years (range, 26-60 years). The mechanisms of injury were traffic accidents in 4 cases, wringer injury in 1 case, and bruise injury caused by heavy object in 1 case. The defects located at the lower extremity in 5 cases and at the upper extremity in 1 case. The area of the wound ranged from 7 cm×4 cm to 26 cm×10 cm. There were 3 cases of bone defect, 3 cases of joint and tendon exposure, 2 cases of chronic osteomyelitis, and 2 cases of main artery injury. The muscle flap was inserted into the deep dead space, with perforator flap for superficial defect. The area of perforator flap ranged from 10 cm×5 cm to 28 cm×11 cm and the area of muscle flap ranged from 5 cm×2 cm to 20 cm×5 cm. The defects on the donor sites were closed directly. Results All the flaps were survival without infection and vascular crisis. The wounds of recipient and donor sites healed at first intention. The patients were followed up 3- 24 months (mean, 10 months). Good color and texture of flaps was achieved. The reconstructed main artery patency was achieved and the end of the affected limb was well transported. Only linear scar left on the donor site on thigh with no malfunction. Conclusion The Flow-through chimeric ALTP flap can construct three-dimensional soft tissue defects without sacrificing the recipient vessels. The Flow-through chimeric ALTP flap is an reliable and ideal method for reconstruction of complex wounds in the limbs with dead space and with or without recipient major vessels injury.
ObjectiveTo explore the feasibility and effectiveness of free transplantation of medial plantar Flow-through venous flap for primary repairing children’s finger wounds with digital artery defect.MethodsBetween July 2016 and October 2020, 9 children who suffered finger wounds with digital artery defect were primary repaired with free transplantation of medial plantar Flow-through venous flap. There were 6 boys and 3 girls, with an average age of 6.8 years (range, 4-13 years). The defects were caused by heavy weight puncture injury in 5 cases and strangulation injury in 4 cases. Among them, there were 3 cases of index finger wounds, 3 cases of middle finger wounds, 2 cases of ring finger wounds, and 1 case of little finger wounds. The wound area ranged from 1.8 cm×1.5 cm to 4.0 cm×2.5 cm. The time from injury to operation was 1.3-8.6 hours, with an average of 4.8 hours. The flap area ranged from 2.0 cm×1.6 cm to 4.2 cm×2.6 cm. After the flaps were inverted, the veins were used to bridge the finger arteries while repairing the wounds. The donor site of the foot was sutured directly in 4 cases, and repaired with full-thickness skin grafts in 5 cases.ResultsAll flaps survived, and hand wounds healed by first intention; 8 cases of foot donor site wounds healed by first intention, and 1 case had partial necrosis in the marginal area of the skin graft, which healed after dressing change. All 9 children were followed up 3-24 months, with an average of 9 months. The color and texture of the flap were similar to those of the surrounding normal skin, and the protective feeling was restored. The two-point discrimination of the flap was 7-10 mm, with an average of 8 mm. At last follow-up, according to the upper limb function evaluation standard of Hand Surgery Society of Chinese Medical Association, the finger function was excellent in 5 cases and good in 4 cases. There was no ulcer formation and scar hyperplasia in the foot donor site, which did not affect walking.ConclusionThe free transplantation of medial plantar Flow-through venous flap is an ideal repair method for repairing children’s finger wounds with digital artery defect. It has the advantages of simple flap extraction, thin flap, similar color and texture to the skin of the hand, and concealed donor site.
Objective To investigate the effectiveness of Flow-through bridge anterolateral thigh flap transplantation in the treatment of complex calf soft tissue defects. Methods The clinical data of the patients with complicated calf soft tissue defects, who were treated with Flow-through bridge anterolateral thigh flap (study group, 23 cases) or bridge anterolateral thigh flap (control group, 23 cases) between January 2008 and January 2022, were retrospectively analyzed. All complex calf soft tissue defects in the two groups were caused by trauma or osteomyelitis, and there was only one major blood vessel in the calf or no blood vessel anastomosed with the grafted skin flap. There was no significant difference between the two groups in general data such as gender, age, etiology, size of leg soft tissue defect, and time from injury to operation (P>0.05). The lower extremity functional scale (LEFS) was used to evaluate the sufferred lower extremity function of the both groups after operation, and the peripheral blood circulation score of the healthy side was evaluated according to the Chinese Medical Association Hand Surgery Society’s functional evaluation standard for replantation of amputated limbs. Weber’s quantitative method was used to detect static 2-point discrimination (S2PD) to evaluate peripheral sensation of the healthy side, and the popliteal artery flow velocity, toenail capillary filling time, foot temperature, toe blood oxygen saturation of the healthy side, and the incidence of complications were compared between the two groups. Results No vascular or nerve injury occurred during operation. All flaps survived, and 1 case of partial flap necrosis occurred in both groups, which healed after free skin grafting. All patients were followed up 6 months to 8 years, with a median time of 26 months. The function of the sufferred limb of the two groups recovered satisfactorily, the blood supply of the flap was good, the texture was soft, and the appearance was fair. The incision in the donor site healed well with a linear scar, and the color of the skin graft area was similar. Only a rectangular scar could be seen in the skin donor area where have a satisfactory appearance. The blood supply of the distal limb of the healthy limb was good, and there was no obvious abnormality in color and skin temperature, and the blood supply of the limb was normal during activity. The popliteal artery flow velocity in the study group was significantly faster than that in the control group at 1 month after the pedicle was cut, and the foot temperature, toe blood oxygen saturation, S2PD, toenail capillary filling time, and peripheral blood circulation score were significantly better than those in the control group (P<0.05). There were 8 cases of cold feet and 2 cases of numbness on the healthy side in the control group, while only 3 cases of cold feet occurred in the study group. The incidence of complications in the study group (13.04%) was significantly lower than that in the control group (43.47%) (χ2=3.860, P=0.049). There was no significant difference in LEFS score between the two groups at 6 months after operation (P>0.05). ConclusionFlow-through bridge anterolateral thigh flap can reduce postoperative complications of healthy feet and reduce the impact of surgery on blood supply and sensation of healthy feet. It is an effective method for repairing complex calf soft tissue defects.
ObjectiveTo investigate the effectiveness of the island flaps based on the superficial palmar branch of the radial artery (SPBRA) to repair the thumb wound. MethodsBetween February 2012 and November 2013, 8 cases of thumb defects and bilateral artery defect were treated. There were 5 males and 3 females with an average age of 30.5 years (range, 19-51 years). The injury was caused by crush (4 cases), avulsion (3 cases), and twist (1 case). The injury located at the metacarpophalangeal joints in 3 cases, at the proximal palmar side in 2 cases, and at the interphalangeal joints in 3 cases. The defect size ranged from 3.5 cm×1.5 cm to 6.5 cm×2.0 cm. The digital artery defect was 2.5-8.5 cm (mean, 5.3 cm). The disease duration was 2.0-4.5 hours (mean, 3.2 hours). The reversed island flaps based on the SPBRA were designed, which size was 4.0 cm×2.0 cm to 7.5 cm×3.0 cm. The donor sites were closed directly. ResultsThe operation was successfully completed in 7 patients except 1 patient having vascular variation. All flaps survived completely. Wound and incision at the donor site healed by first intention. All patients were followed up 6-18 months (mean, 13 months). The flaps had similar color and texture to adjacent skin. Linear scar was seen at the donor site in 1 patient, with no functional limitation. According to the functional assessment criteria of upper limb by the Hand Surgery Branch of Chinese Medical Association, the results were excellent in 6 cases, good in 1 case, and fair in 1 case, with an excellent and good rate of 87.5%. ConclusionThe reversed island flap based on the SPBRA is an ideal flap for the thumb reconstruction because the advantages of reliable blood supply, easy dissection, less injury at donor site, and good repair results.