Objective To summarize and review the development and experience of anastomosis vascular pedicle free composite tissue flap. Methods From July 1987 to March 2007， 321 patients with complete records were treated. Fourteen tissue flaps were applied for the repair of trauma or tumor excision defects of the body, and for organ reconstruction. Results Vascular crisis occurred in 20 patients within 48 hours postoperatively. Necrosis occurred at flap end in 6 patients. The total survival rate was 94.8%. The main experience was: ① Training to grasp the basic microvascular anastomosis technique was very importantstarting up period for surgeons. The basic technique should be often practiced to ensure the safty of clinical application. ②Restoring appearance and function were equally important in practice.③Utilizing the minimal invasive methods and decreasing the loss of function of donor site were important for improvement of reconstruction quality. The purpose was to achieve functional and esthetic restoration in the condition of lowest donor site scarification. Conclusion The application of free composite tissue flap is important for the development of plastic surgery. There are extensive applications for free flap, especially for those critical patients. The application of free flap could decrease the mobility rate, shorten the treatment period, ease the pain of patients and improve the reconstruction effect. The experience of donor site selection, the strategy of poor recipient site condition, the advantages and disadvantages of muscle flap, the applications time, infections wound treatment and application, are helpful for the future application.
Objective To evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of vascularized free peroneal composite flaps for reconstruction of oral and maxillofacial defects. Methods From November 1999 to December 2002, 28 cases of oral maxillofacial defects were reconstructed with vascularized free peroneal composite flaps, with fibulacutaneous flap in 21 cases and with fibulamyocutaneous flap in 7 cases. Three cases received insertion of dental implants into the fibula flap. The flap size was 3.0 cm×5.5 cm to 8.0 cm ×12.0 cm; the fibula length was 5.5 cm to 16.0 cm. Results Of the 28 flaps reconstructed, 24 survived,3 necrosed partially and 1 necrosed completely. All the 5 implants survived andachieved good bone integration in 3 cases. Twenty-six cases were followed up 1-36 months with an average of 18.5 months, the facial appearance and the vocal function were satisfactory in 23 cases. Conclusion Vascularized peroneal flap has many advantages and is one of the optimal flaps for reconstruction of oral maxillofacial defects.