Open AccessUnilateral pectoralis major muscle flap for the treatment of sternal wounds due to Ludwig's angina
Author(s) -
Albacete Neto Antonio,
Coltro Pedro S,
Horácio Grazielle S,
Almeida Ivan R,
Farina Junior Jayme A
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
international wound journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1742-481X
pISSN - 1742-4801
DOI - 10.1111/iwj.12844
Subject(s) - medicine , mediastinitis , sternum , dehiscence , surgery , pectoralis major muscle , wound dehiscence , pectoralis muscle , angina , median sternotomy , osteomyelitis , cardiology , myocardial infarction
Necrotising descending mediastinitis may rarely originate from Ludwig's angina, which is an infection of the submandibular space. The use of the bilateral pectoralis major muscle flap for the treatment of sternal wound dehiscence is common, but reports of the unilateral application of this flap are scarce. This study aims to report the use of the unilateral pectoralis major muscle flap for the treatment of sternotomy dehiscence in a patient with mediastinitis due to Ludwig's angina. A 21‐year‐old male patient underwent an exploratory cervicotomy and median sternotomy for drainage of a submandibular infection that extended to the anterior, retropharyngeal and mediastinal cervical spaces. The patient had dehiscence of the sternal wound, and the unilateral pectoralis major muscle flap was used for reconstruction of the defect. This flap was able to completely cover the area of dehiscence of the sternotomy, and the patient presented a good postoperative evolution, without complications. The reconstruction technique using the unilateral pectoralis major muscle flap was considered a good option for the treatment of sternotomy dehiscence. It is an adjuvant method in the treatment of infections such as mediastinitis and osteomyelitis of the sternum secondary to Ludwig's angina, allowing a stable coverage of the sternum.