title: Prophylactic plating of the donor site of osteocutaneous radial forearm flaps.
abstract: We carried out a retrospective study of fracture morbidity of radial forearm osteocutaneous donor sites. During a period of three-and-a-half years, 12 patients had had composite flaps taken, and 5 of them had subsequently fractured the radius. We then elected to plate the radius prophylactically and found that over a period of just over two years, none of the 8 patients who had had prophylactic plating at the original harvesting operation had subsequently fractured the radius.
authors.affiliation: St Richard's Hospital, Chichester, Sussex.
authors.forename: V A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Nuñez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pike
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Avery
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Rosson
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001860:Bone Plates; D016025:Bone Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D005542:Forearm / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011884:Radius / Q000601:surgery; D011885:Radius Fractures / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013524:Surgical Flaps / Q000009:adverse effects