Bonnie J. Baldwin

Timing of pedicle thrombosis and flap loss after free-tissue transfer.

&NA; A series of 990 consecutive free flaps was reviewed to determine how often pedicle thrombosis occurred, when it occurred, and if the timing of thrombosis detection had any relationship to the probability of flap salvage. The overall thrombosis rate was 5.1 percent, and the flap loss rate was 3.2 percent. The majority (80 percent) of thrombi occurred within the first 2 postoperative days. Only 5 thrombi (10 percent) were known to have occurred after the third postoperative day. No flaps that developed thrombosis after the third postoperative day were salvaged successfully. Had flap monitoring been discontinued after the first 3 postoperative days, our results in this series would have been unchanged. Thrombosis of the vein (54 percent) was more common than arterial thrombosis (20 percent) or thrombosis of both artery and vein (12 percent). Almost all purely arterial thrombi (90 percent) occurred before the end of the first postoperative day, whereas 41 percent of all venous thrombi occurred later. We conclude that arterial monitoring is most critical immediately after surgery. Beginning on the second postoperative day, venous monitoring becomes progressively more important to flap success. The cost‐effectiveness of postoperative monitoring of free flaps is greatest during the first 2 days, after which it decreases significantly.

A comparison of outcomes using three different methods of breast reconstruction.

In a review of 325 postmastectomy breast reconstructions, the aesthetic quality of the result and the risk of unsuccessful outcome were compared for three techniques: tissue expansion (105 breasts), latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap (47 breasts), and TRAM flap (173 breasts). The aesthetic successes achievable with the three methods were similar, and some excellent results were achieved with each of them. The failure rate after tissue expansion (21 percent) was significantly higher than those observed with the TRAM (3 percent) and latissimus (9 percent) flaps. Tissue expansion also was not as aesthetically successful as other techniques in obese patients. For immediate breast reconstruction, the TRAM flap was the most aesthetically successful technique. Although tissue expansion has advantages and may be the best choice for some patients, methods that used autogenous tissue provided more consistent success.

Choice of flap and incidence of free flap success

&NA; A review of 854 consecutive free flaps was performed to determine whether the choice of flap used for the reconstruction influenced the probability of a successful outcome. Flaps were grouped into nine categories: rectus abdominis, free transverse rectus abdominis myocutancous, radial forearm, jejunum, latissimus dorsi, fibula, scapula, iliac crest, and other. There were significant differences among the success rates of different flaps (p < 0.0001). Rectus abdominis‐based flaps used for breast or head and neck reconstruction had lower failure rates (0.9 percent) than did non‐rectus abdominis Haps (6.6 percent; p < 0.0001). Flaps requiring vein grafts had a higher rate of flap loss (18.4 percent) than did flaps that did not require vein grafts (2.9 percent; p < 0.0001). There was a strong trend favoring survival of flaps without a bone component (compared with osteocutaneous flaps), and a weaker trend favoring survival of flaps in nonobese patients (compared with flaps in obese patients). Smoking, age. and previous irradiation had no significant effect on flap failure rales. Surgeons should consider the flap success rate as one (but not necessarily the most important) factor in choosing the best reconstruction for any individual patient.

The free transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous flap for breast reconstruction: One center's experience with 211 consecutive cases

All patients undergoing breast reconstruction with free transverse rectus abdominis musculocutaneous (TRAM) flaps from February 1989 to November 1992 were registered into a computerized database and followed prospectively. There were 211 free TRAM flap breast reconstructions in 163 patients; 48 reconstructions were bilateral. A muscle split technique was used in 108 of 211 reconstructions (51%). Total flap loss occurred in 3 of 211 reconstructions for a success rate of 99%. Complications occurred in 81 of 211 reconstructions (38%). Fat necrosis or partial flap loss occurred in 15 of 211 (7%). Hernia or bulge occurred in 11 patients (5%). The bulge/hernia rate tended to be lower in the muscle split group (4 of 108 [4%]) than in those who did not have muscle split procedures (7 of 103 [7%]), whereas the fat necrosis rate was slightly higher in the former group (9 of 108 [8%]) than in the latter (6 of 103 [6%]). Neither difference was statistically significant. However, patients who currently or previously smoked cigarettes did have a significantly higher incidence of fat necrosis: 12 of 99 smokers (12%) had fat necrosis compared with 3 of 112 nonsmokers (3%; p = 0.02).

A comparison of resource costs of immediate and delayed breast reconstruction

&NA; The resource cost (cost to our hospital) of providing mastectomy plus breast reconstruction was calculated for 276 patients who had received both mastectomy and breast reconstruction at our institution. All patients had completed the entire reconstructive process, including reconstruction of the nipple. The resource costs of providing mastectomy with immediate breast reconstruction were compared with those of mastectomy with subsequent delayed reconstruction. We found that the mean resource cost for the 57 patients who had separate mastectomy followed by delayed breast reconstruction (

Morbidity and functional outcome of free jejunal transfer reconstruction for circumferential defects of the pharynx and cervical esophagus

28,843) was 62 percent higher than that of mastectomy with immediate reconstruction (

Feasibility of postmastectomy radiation therapy after TRAM flap breast reconstruction

17,801; n = 219, p < 0.001). Similar differences were found when patients were subgrouped by type of reconstruction (TRAM versus tissue expansion and implants), by laterality (unilateral versus bilateral), and by history of preoperative irradiation. We conclude that mastectomy with immediate breast reconstruction is significantly less expensive than mastectomy followed by delayed reconstruction and can potentially conserve resources.

Influence of prior radiotherapy on the development of postoperative complications and success of free tissue transfers in head and neck cancer reconstruction

Free jejunal transfer has been criticized by some surgeons as unreliable, poorly tolerant of radiation therapy, and associated with significant morbidity and dysphagia. To determine the validity of these criticisms, we reviewed 93 patients who underwent 96 free jejunal transfers for repair of circumferential pharyngoesophageal defects over a 5-year period. The free jejunal transfer success rate was 97 percent; all 3 failures were repaired with repeated free jejunal transfer. The complication rate was 57 percent (55 of 96); fistula (19 percent) and stricture (15 percent) were the most common complications. An oral diet was tolerated by 80 percent of patients; 85 percent of these resumed their diet within 2 weeks of surgery. Causes of dysphagia were multifactorial. Postoperative radiation therapy did not increase morbidity or dysphagia. The perioperative mortality rate was 2 percent. We conclude that free jejunal transfer is a reliable method of pharyngoesophageal reconstruction that has an acceptable morbidity rate and a low mortality rate. Postoperative radiation therapy is well tolerated by the free jejunal transfer.

Comparison of resource costs between implant-based and TRAM flap breast reconstruction.

AbstractBackground: Postoperative radiotherapy (PORT) has been shown to decrease locoregional failure rates in high-risk breast cancer patients following modified radical mastectomy. However, there had not been a study evaluating the effect of PORT in patients after transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flap breast reconstruction. Therefore, we evaluated flap viability, cosmetic results, and locoregional recurrence in patients who underwent TRAM flap reconstruction and PORT. Methods: The charts of patients who had undergone modified radical mastectomy with TRAM flap reconstruction and PORT at our institution were reviewed. Patients were examined in the clinic and interviewed by telephone to evaluate their perceptions of the cosmetic result. Results: PORT was delivered to 19 patients with TRAM flaps (3 pedicled and 16 free flaps) between 1988 and 1994. There were no TRAM flap losses as a result of either surgical or radiotherapy complications. Two patients developed fat necrosis, one with a pedicled and one with a free TRAM flap. Patients with pedicled TRAM flaps noted more volume loss in the breast after radiation therapy. Eighty-four percent of patients felt their overall cosmetic result was excellent or good; only one patient reported a poor cosmetic result. Local control was achieved in three of the four patients who received PORT for local recurrence. There was only one local recurrence among the 14 patients who received PORT because they were at high risk of local recurrence. Conclusions: These results suggest that PORT can be given safely to high-risk patients following TRAM flap breast reconstruction with excellent cosmetic results and good locoregional control.

A comparison of resource costs for head and neck reconstruction with free and pectoralis major flaps.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether prior radiotherapy had any effect on the development of postoperative complications in patients undergoing microvascular tissue transfers for reconstruction of head and neck cancer. A prospective database was used to review 354 consecutive patients who had a total of 368 free tissue transfers limited to the head and neck during the 4-year period from July 1988 to June 1992. Postoperative complications in 167 patients who received preoperative radiotherapy (XRT) were compared with those of 187 patients who did not undergo radiotherapy preoperatively (NR). No statistical differences in complications or flap loss between the two groups were noted using the chi 2 test or Fishers exact test (p > 0.2). Total flap loss occurred in 5.3% of the XRT group (9 of 169) and 5.0% of the NR patient group (10 of 199), and partial flap loss occurred in 4.1% of the irradiated patients and 2.5% of the nonirradiated patients. Major wound complications requiring additional surgery occurred in 16% of the XRT group and 11% of the NR group. Minor wound complications that did not require further surgery occurred in 21% of the irradiated patients and 18% of the nonirradiated patients. No significant difference in the timing or dose of preoperative radiation, previous neck dissection, or anastomotic type could be documented in failed versus successful flaps (two-tailed t-test, p > 0.80, and chi 2, p > 0.2). Our results show that, in a large group of cancer patients undergoing free tissue transfers to the head and neck, prior radiotherapy or surgery did not predispose them to a higher rate of acute flap loss or wound complications than their nonirradiated cohorts.