Successful combined approach to a severe Fournier's gangrene.

We present a case of a successful reconstruction of a severe Fournier's gangrene (FG) involving the scrotum, the perineum, the right ischial area and extended to the lower abdomen. There are many different surgical techniques to repair and reconstruct the defect following debridement in FG. The authors treated this complex wound using negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT), dermal regeneration template and a split-thickness skin graft.

A novel combined surgical approach to head and neck dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans.

Introduction: The surgical management of dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans has historically been a challenge, particularly in the head and neck and other aesthetic areas. The current priority is to achieve local oncologic control and a good reconstructive outcome. Here, we present our experience using a novel combined approach with a dermal regenerative template, sub-atmospheric pressure and skin graft.

Wet and dry techniques for structural fat graft harvesting: histomorphometric and cell viability assessments of lipoaspirated samples.

Background: Autologous fat transplantation is among the surgical procedures performed most commonly by plastic surgeons for cosmetic and/or reconstructive purposes. In the procedure, autologous fat is harvested and infiltrated during the same operation, and the success of this procedure relies on harvesting and transferring viable adipocytes. This study was designed to assess the histomorphometric characteristics and viability of the lipoaspirated cells that were harvested through different techniques.

Head and neck polypoid melanoma.

Polypoid melanoma represents a rare clinical variant of nodular melanoma skin cancer in which the tumor is connected to the skin by a pedicle, characterized by exophytic growth, ulceration, and young age at onset (20-39 years) with a special predilection for the back and with a survival rate at 5 years ranging from 32% to 42% as compared with 57% 5-year survival for nodular subtype and 77% for the superficial subtype. We present a case of a deeply pigmented polypoid melanoma arising on the face of a 77-year-old man. We performed a literature review to clarify its surgical management and prognosis.

Vacuum-assisted closure, dermal regeneration template and degloved cryopreserved skin as useful tools in subtotal degloving of the lower limb.

The standard management of degloving injuries involves either immediate grafting with the avulsed skin or full- or split-thickness grafts at a later date. Alternative methods include pedicle and free flaps and revascularisation. The authors present an innovative technique of treating degloving injuries with cryopreserved split-thickness skin grafts harvested from degloved flap, artificial dermal replacement and vacuum-assisted closure (VAC therapy).

Contrast-enhanced ultrasound: a filter role in AJCC stage I/II melanoma patients.

One of the most significant advances in melanoma staging is sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB). It is a surgical technique to detect occult nonpalpable micrometastases in regional lymph nodes. Recently, contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) was introduced as a noninvasive procedure, in spite of SLNB, for the detection of SLNs in patients with cutaneous melanoma.

Duplex ultrasound changes in the great saphenous vein after endosaphenous laser occlusion with 808-nm wavelength.

Background: Endosaphenous laser ablation is used in the treatment of great saphenous vein insufficiency with various methods, with and without surgical interruption. However, its mode of action and indications are not yet clear.

Methods: To verify the mode of action of endosaphenous laser ablation by duplex ultrasound (DUS) follow-up, with the support of histologic observations of eight cases, 44 of 182 affected limbs (CEAP C2 to C6) were selected for intravenous laser ablation of the great saphenous vein.

Outcome of patients with melanoma and histologically negative sentinel lymph nodes: one institution's experience.

Background: Since its introduction by Morton in 1992, sentinel lymph node (SLN) biopsy has become a standard procedure in the staging and treatment of primary melanoma and clinically negative regional lymph nodes. The primary aims of this procedure are to ascertain the individual lymphatic drainage patterns of primary tumors towards 1 or more different lymph node basins and to identify patients with micrometastatic lymphatic disease for selective lymphadenectomy. The aim of our study was to evaluate over time a cohort of patients who, having undergone SLN treatment, were found negative for metastases using routine histopathological and immunohistochemical analyses.

Circumferential abdominoplasty.

Background: In Italy, 34.2% of the population has a BMI higher than 25, and another 9.8% of the population has a BMI higher than 30.

Autologous lipofilling: coenzyme Q10 can rescue adipocytes from stress-induced apoptotic death.

Background: Autologous fat transplantation (or lipofilling) is an excellent technique for correction of cosmetic defects. The success of the procedure relies strongly on the techniques of harvesting and transferring viable adipocytes. The purpose of this study was to evaluate effects of two harvesting methods and coenzyme Q10 on the viability and apoptotic death of adipocytes collected for autologous lipofilling.

Primary cutaneous osteosarcoma of the scalp: a case report and review of the literature.

We report on an 84-year-old man with a solitary, nodular lesion on the scalp. The patient had been previously submitted to electrodessications of the scalp due to multiple solar keratoses. Histopathologically, the lesion showed features of a high-grade conventional osteoblastic osteosarcoma involving the dermis.