title: Does pectoralis major flap harvesting induce upper extremity dysfunction?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effect of pectoralis major myocutaneous (PMM) flap reconstruction on upper extremity dysfunction.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients undergoing PMM flap reconstruction following head and neck cancer resection were enrolled. The control group comprised age-, sex- and clinical characteristic-matched patients undergoing non-PMM flap reconstruction. All patients completed the Disability of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) questionnaire preoperatively and >1 year postoperatively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was no significant difference between pre- and postoperative DASH scores in the control group (n = 46; 2.38 ± 3.33 and 2.99 ± 4.21, respectively). In the PMM flap group (n = 46), the postoperative DASH score was significantly higher than the preoperative score (7.00 ± 9.13 and 2.44 ± 3.50, respectively). In the PMM flap group, flap size was significantly associated with postoperative DASH score.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PMM flap reconstruction has a small but significant negative effect on upper extremity dysfunction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China zzdxfszlyy@163.com.
authors.forename: Shu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Di
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Shi-Feng
authors.initials: SF
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, Shenyang, China.
authors.forename: Chen-Chao
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures; D012782:Shoulder / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013524:Surgical Flaps
keywords: DASH questionnaire; Upper extremity dysfunction; pectoralis major myocutaneous flap; shoulder function