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Reliable harvest of a dorsal scapular artery perforator flap by augmenting its perfusion
Author(s) -
Kim SoYoung,
Lee KyeongTae,
Mun GooHyun
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
microsurgery
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.031
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1098-2752
pISSN - 0738-1085
DOI - 10.1002/micr.22349
Subject(s) - medicine , perforator flaps , dorsum , perfusion , thoracodorsal artery , anatomy , artery , surgery , microsurgery , free flap , radiology
Despite confirmation of a reliable perforasome in the dorsal scapular artery in an anatomic study, a true perforator flap has not been recommended in previous clinical studies because of concerns regarding insufficient perfusion in the distal region. In this report, we present two cases of reconstruction for occipital defects caused by tumor extirpation using pedicled dorsal scapular artery perforator flaps without a muscle component. To secure the perfusion of the dorsal scapular artery perforator flap, inclusion of an additional perforator was attempted for perfusion augmentation. The second dorsal scapular artery perforator was harvested in one case. In an additional case, the sixth dorsal intercostal artery perforator with a branch that directly connected with the dorsal scapular artery within the trapezius muscle was additionally harvested. The flaps survived without any perfusion‐related complications, including tip necrosis, and no donor site morbidities were observed. We suggest that a perfusion augmented dorsal scapular artery perforator flap by harvesting multiple perforators could be a safe and useful alternative for reconstructive surgery of head and neck defects. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microsurgery 36:152–156, 2016.