title: Investigation of Microsurgical Technique Combined With Skin Flap Expansion for Ear Reconstruction in Treating Hunter Type III Congenital Microtia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study aims to observe the efficacies of microsurgical technique combined with the Zhuang's skin soft tissue expander in treating Hunter type III congenital microtia.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-eight patients (61 ears) were enrolled from 2003 to 2012; the skin tissue expander was embedded subepidermally in the first stage via the intrahairline longitudinal incision in the postauricular mastoid area, the diseased-side rib cartilage was then taken for preparing the ear bracket in the second stage, and the tragus was surgically reconstructed in the third stage.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean follow-up lasted 6 months to 10 years, the results were satisfactory for 54 ears and acceptable for 5 ears, and 2 ears (in two patients) appeared with complications, including 1 case of ear flap expansion rupture and 1 case of postoperative lateral helix flap necrosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The combination of microsurgical technique, Zhuang's skin soft tissue expander, and autogenous rib cartilage graft could achieve satisfactory results in treating Hunter type III congenital microtia, and the complications were less, so it was worthy of clinical applications.
authors.affiliation: From the *Department of Burn and Repair Reconstruction Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China; †Department of Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery, the General Hospital of the Second Artillery, Beijing, China; and ‡Department of Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery, the General Hospital of PLA, Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Minyan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Xiaochen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Huxian
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Ning
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Zhengjun
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Cui
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D065817:Congenital Microtia / Q000601:surgery*; D066186:Costal Cartilage / Q000637:transplantation*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008866:Microsurgery / Q000379:methods*; D019651:Plastic Surgery Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D013524:Surgical Flaps; D015626:Tissue Expansion / Q000379:methods*; D015625:Tissue Expansion Devices; D016896:Treatment Outcome