[Repair of soft tissue defects on the lower limbs with the facial pedicled flap with vascular perforating branch of leg].
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the operative techniques and clinical results of the facial pedicled flap with vascular perforating branch of leg.


METHODS
From May 1998 to January 2009,62 patients with soft tissue defects on the lower limbs were treated by four kinds of flap pedicled with the medial, posterior,anterolateral and posterolateral vascular perforating branches in the leg, included 50 males and 12 females, aged from 7 to 78 years old. There were 23 cases of the facial pedicled flap based on the perforating branch of the tibialis posterior artery, 9 cases of the facial pedicled flap based on the distal perforating branch of peroneal artery, 22 cases of the facial pedicled flap based on the peroneal artery perforator, 8 cases of the facial pedicled flap based on the lateral popliteal cutaneous artery.


RESULTS
The remaining flaps were completely survived except for 2 cases with epidermal necrosis and scab of distal flap, and 1 case with skin necrosis and skingrafting later. The patients were followed-up for from 1 month to 3 years, the appearance of the flaps were satisfied and the function were good.


CONCLUSIONS
The blood supply area of single perforator vascular of the leg is insufficient, so the presence facial pedicled flap of arterial chains will expend obviously the area of perforator flap that be good to blood supply and venous return.
Xia
Zeng-Bing
ZB
Department of Orthopaedics, the First People s Hospital of Huzhou, Huzhou 313000, Zhejiang, China.
Wang
Dan
D
Yuan
Yong-Jian
YJ
Min
Ji-Kang
JK
Yang
Wen-Long
WL
Li
Han-Chun
HC
Xu
Xu-Chun
XC
Mei
Jin
J
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg / Q000098:blood supply*; D035002:Lower Extremity / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D055815:Young Adult