Dog-ears: a useful artifice in the closure of extensive wounds.
BACKGROUND
Wounds too extensive to permit primary repair by suturing can be closed using a skin graft or skin flap and the choice of method depends on a series of factors. Practice and personal experience play a role, as well as the characteristics of the lesion and its site. Each case poses special problems, so it is not possible to establish firm rules.


OBJECTIVE
To present a surgical technique for the closure of a circular defect located on the dorsum of the foot, which resulted from the extirpation of a melanoma by surgery.


METHODS
In this case we used a mixed procedure consisting of skin flaps and a double full-thickness skin graft. For this operation we used dog-ears resulting from the circular exeresis performed for the extirpation of the tumour.


RESULTS
The reconstructive results were good and there were no postoperative complications.


CONCLUSIONS
We consider this procedure particularly suitable for certain anatomical sites, such as the dorsum of the foot, where the skin is less elastic and thinner; and for patients who are not willing to accept skin removal from other sites or for flaps to be made with more invasive operations and more constructed scars.
De Giorgi
V
V
Department of Dermatology, University of Florence, Italy. dermoncologia@unifi.it
Mannone
F
F
Quercioli
E
E
Giannotti
V
V
Piccolo
E
E
Carli
P
P
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D005528:Foot; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D008545:Melanoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D011379:Prognosis; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000379:methods; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D013536:Suture Techniques; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology