title: Free hemiback flap with surgical delay for reconstruction of extensive soft tissue defect: a case report.
abstract: A delay procedure allows for reliable tissue transfer in random pattern flaps and axial pattern flaps. However, delay procedures have not been studied in free flaps. In this report, we present a case involving the use of a free extended latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap (hemiback flap) that included half of the total back skin and was based on thoracodorsal vessels for reconstruction of an extensive soft tissue defect of the flank and waist. The flap was tailored in combination with a delay procedure. Intraoperative indocyanine green fluorescence angiography indicated profuse perfusion except for the most inferomedial part of the flap, which was discarded. The flap survived. A free hemiback flap may offer a valuable option for reconstruction of extensive soft tissue defects. To our knowledge, this is the first report to demonstrate a free flap made in combination with a delay procedure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Hamamatsu University, School of Medicine, Hamamatsu, Japan. masaofuj@mth.biglobe.ne.jp
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagata
authors.forename: Yuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Matsushita
authors.forename: Hidekazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fukamizu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001415:Back; D058752:Free Tissue Flaps; D006801:Humans; D008080:Liposarcoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D010388:Pelvis; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures; D012983:Soft Tissue Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D013997:Time Factors