Aesthetic Management of External Skin Paddles Following Microvascular Reconstruction of the Head and Neck
January 2008
in “
Facial Plastic Surgery
”
TLDR Improve skin paddle appearance after head and neck reconstruction using tissue expansion, rearrangement, and flaps.
The article discusses various techniques for improving the appearance of skin paddles following microvascular reconstruction of the head and neck. These techniques include tissue expansion, regional tissue rearrangement, and the use of submental and posterior scalping flaps. The article provides detailed descriptions of these techniques and their advantages for achieving optimal camouflage of transferred skin paddles. The article concludes that skin paddle mismatch with native tissue characteristics of the face may result in a suboptimal aesthetic outcome despite successful wound closure, but several options are available in the postoperative setting to help optimize the final appearance of transferred skin paddles.