Surgical refinements and sensory and functional outcomes of using thinned sensate anterolateral thigh perforator flaps for foot and ankle reconstruction: A retrospective study.

ABSTRACT: To improve the use of sensate anterolateral thigh (ALT) flaps for foot and ankle reconstruction, we employed a thinned nerve-selective harvesting technique. The data of 31 patients in whom sensate ALT perforator flaps were transferred for reconstruction of soft-tissue defects in the foot and ankle were reviewed. Flaps were elevated with 2 refinements. The first is the initial selection of the "true" sensory branch in the medial incision on the suprafascial plane. The second is flap thinning by keeping a cuff of thin deep fat surrounding the point where the perforator or nerve branch inserts into the superficial fat layer. The recipient site assessment consisted of complications, monofilament touch perception, sharp-blunt discrimination, axial circumference, and American Orthopedic Foot and

SUBMITTER: Pan Z 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11404924 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature