Radiation and free flaps: what is the optimal timing?

ABSTRACT: The debate over when to perform flaps in patients undergoing radiation remains an ongoing dilemma without definitive resolution. Classically, reconstructive surgeons recommended avoiding exposure of autologous flaps to radiotherapy due to concerns over surgical complications and poor aesthetic outcomes. However, delayed reconstruction carries its own risk profile and aesthetic limitations, given the irreversible changes to the breast envelope. Immediate reconstruction not only confers psychosocial benefits but allows for preservation of the native breast skin and footprint. In recent years, a growing body of evidence suggests that with modern radiation techniques, long-term outcomes of immediate vs. delayed autologous reconstruction may be more similar than previously thought. This

SUBMITTER: Koesters EC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10493623 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature