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Free flow‐through anterolateral thigh flap for complex knee defect including the popliteal artery
Author(s) -
Miyamoto Shimpei,
Fujiki Masahide,
Nakatani Fumihiko,
Sakisaka Masanobu,
Sakuraba Minoru
Publication year - 2015
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.22421
Subject(s) - medicine , popliteal artery , thigh , surgery , anatomy
Reconstruction of complex knee defects including the popliteal artery presents a challenging problem in reconstructive microsurgery. Reconstruction of the popliteal artery and soft‐tissue coverage should be performed simultaneously for limb salvage. We present the one‐stage reconstruction of a complex knee defect including the popliteal artery using a free flow‐through anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap as a bypass flap in two patients with sarcomas. In both patients, the popliteal artery and vein were reconstructed using branches of the lateral circumflex femoral arterial system. The flaps survived without vascular compromise and the limbs were preserved successfully. Free flow‐through ALT flap enables simultaneous leg revascularization and soft‐tissue coverage with a single free flap. The lateral circumflex femoral arterial system has many branches with large diameters, making it suitable for reconstruction of multiple infrapopliteal arteries. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microsurgery 35:485–488, 2015.