title: The versatility of the distally based peroneus brevis muscle flap in reconstructive surgery of the foot and lower leg.
abstract: Soft tissue and bone defects of the lower leg, ankle, and heel region often require coverage by local or distant flaps. The authors successfully used the distally based peroneus brevis muscle flap for the treatment of 15 patients with osteomyelitis (n = 5), melanoma (n = 1), Achilles tendon defects (n = 6), posttraumatic bone defects (n = 2), and chronic diabetic heel ulcer (n = 1). The size of the defects ranged from 6 to 60 cm. All defects were covered successfully without major complications by the muscle flap. The distally based peroneus brevis muscle represents a very reliable flap for coverage of small and moderate defects of the medial and lateral malleolus, the Achilles tendon, and the heel area. This flap offers a convincing alternative for covering defects in the distal leg region and is often preferable to the use of free flaps because the surgery is rapidly performed and does not require microsurgical expertise.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Hand Surgery, University of Erlangen Medical Center, Erlangen, Germany. Alexander.Bach@chir.imed.uni-erlangen.de
authors.forename: Alexander D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Bach
authors.forename: Mareike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leffler
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kneser
authors.forename: Jürgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kopp
authors.forename: Raymund E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Horch
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017719:Diabetic Foot / Q000601:surgery; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000098:blood supply / Q000637:transplantation*; D010019:Osteomyelitis / Q000601:surgery; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery; D017695:Soft Tissue Injuries / Q000601:surgery; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D016896:Treatment Outcome