title: Island composite nasal flap for nasal dorsum skin defects.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Skin defects on the nasal dorsum remain a challenge for the plastic surgeon. There are few local nasal flap options for the repair of proximally positioned nasal skin defects.
  
  
  METHODS
  During a 3-year period, 22 patients were treated after excision of skin cancer in the proximal two-thirds of the nose. Nine patients (41%) were female and 13 (59%) were male, with an average age of 69 years. All patients were operated on under local anesthesia. The average follow-up was 25 months.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all patients, after tumor ablation, the skin defect was closed with an island composite nasal skin flap. Pathohistologic analysis confirmed that the margins of the removed tumor were free of malignant cells. Six patients (27.3%) had squamous cell and 16 (72.7%) had basal cell carcinoma. There was no total or partial flap loss. None of the patients has suffered from recurrence of the tumor.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The island composite nasal flap is a reliable technique for the closure of proximal nasal skin defects. Complications in the elevation of the island composite flap were rare, and the final result was acceptable.
authors: Department of Otolaryngology, General Hospital Zadar, Zadar, Croatia. neven.skitarelic@zd.t-com.hr
authors: Neven
authors: N
authors: Skitarelić
authors: Ranko
authors: R
authors: Mladina
authors: Boris
authors: B
authors: Mraovic
authors: Tatjana
authors: T
authors: Simurina
authors: Nataa
authors: N
authors: Skitarelić
authors: Katarina
authors: K
authors: Vuković
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009666:Nose / Q000601:surgery*; D009669:Nose Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D013518:Surgery, Plastic / Q000379:methods*; D013524:Surgical Flaps