Contemporary postnatal plastic surgical management of meningomyelocele.

Background: The goals of this study were to review the outcome of the surgical procedure and hospitalization associated with meningomyelocele repair, and to examine the results of different closure strategies.

Methods: Eighty-three consecutive patients having surgery for meningomyelocele over a ten year period form the basis of this study. Thirty-two closures with a mean defect size preoperatively of 11.

Effects of comorbidities and implant reinforcement on outcomes after component reconstruction of the abdominal wall.

A series of patients undergoing component reconstruction of midline abdominal wall separations was analyzed to assess the effects of comorbidities and biological implant reinforcements on outcomes. Thirty-nine patients were identified as fitting the technical definition of component repairs and having at least 12 months of documented follow-up. This group of procedures had a 67% primary healing rate, 18% and 13% rate of major and minor complications, respectively, and a total of 90% successful reconstructions after secondary procedures.

The plastic surgeon's guide to drugs affecting hemostasis.

The plastic surgeon is encountering an unprecedented population of aging individuals who both desire cosmetic or reconstructive surgery and may require the use of medications that alter hemostasis. The increasing use of anticoagulants and platelet inhibitors in particular can create challenges for the plastic surgeon. The purpose of this review is to familiarize the surgeon with the medications that can affect hemostasis and to suggest strategies for their use in the perioperative period.