Efficacy of the Posterior Accessory Saphenous Vein as a Vein Graft in Breast Reconstruction Using Profunda Artery Perforator Flap.

The profunda artery perforator (PAP) flap, commonly used for small- to medium-sized breast reconstructions, offers easy harvest and inconspicuous donor-site scars. However, its shorter vascular pedicle compared with the deep inferior epigastric perforator flap limits its reach to lateral recipient vessels. This often requires strategic placement of perforators at the flap's edge to extend reach, potentially causing congestion in the distal part of the flap.

Breast cancer local recurrence after mastectomy with immediate latissimus dorsi myocutaneous flap reconstruction: A case report.

Even though most local recurrences after autologous breast reconstruction occur in superficial tissue, they also occur in deep tissue in the reconstructed breast. A 49-year-old woman presented with a bloody discharge from the right nipple. Ultrasonography revealed a hypoechoic area in her right breast, which was diagnosed as ductal carcinoma in situ on histopathology.

Surface modification of the cubic micro-cartilage by collagenase treatment and its efficacy in cartilage regeneration for ear tissue engineering.

Background: In order to enhance cartilage regeneration, surface modification of the cubic micro-cartilage with the collagenase treatment was tested and its efficacy to tissue engineer ear cartilage was investigated.

Materials And Methods: Harvested cubic micro-cartilages were treated with collagenase with different digestion time (0, 15, 60, and 120 min). Histological, ultrastructural (SEM and TEM), and Western blot analyses were carried out.

A Comparative Study of Nail Fold Approach and Microscopic Nail Bed Approach in the Surgical Treatment of Subungual Exostosis.

Subungual exostosis is a benign tumor that occurs under the nail plate of the distal phalanx and causes nail deformity and pain. There are many reports of recurrence and postoperative nail deformity, and the surgical approach needs to be reassessed. Two typical surgical approaches are from the nail fold and the nail bed.

The Laterally Extended Paramedian Forehead Flap for Nasal Reconstruction: The Delay Technique Revisited.

Background: Problems with poor circulation often occur when a large defect or a distant region, such as the apex of the nose, is covered with a paramedian forehead flap. Delay technique increases the safety of reconstruction procedures, but it has been used less frequently because a 2-stage surgery is necessary, and various other flaps and techniques have been developed.

Method: We performed the delay technique of paramedian forehead flap at the same time as tumor resection.

Preliminary Study of PGA Fabric for Seromas at Latissimus Dorsi Flap Donor Sites.

Background: Seroma formation is a major complication following latissimus dorsi (LD) flap transfer for breast reconstruction. We implanted a nonwoven polyglycolic acid (PGA) fabric-a biodegradable polymer-in the LD flap donor site and examined its effect on postoperative seroma formation and resolution in a comparative study on 38 patients undergoing primary 1-stage breast reconstruction by LD flap.

Method: A PGA treatment group had a PGA fabric placed in the donor wound (PGA group, n = 20), whereas a second group was treated with standard donor site closure (control group, n = 18).

Evaluation of nanofiber-based polyglycolic acid scaffolds for improved chondrocyte retention and in vivo bioengineered cartilage regeneration.

Background: In conventional studies on the regeneration of auricle-shaped cartilage in autogenous models using large animals, there were problems with the cartilage regeneration induction capacity and long-term retention of geometric shape. In this study, the authors sought to improve on outcome in these regards: a nonwoven fabric of polyglycolic acid was developed through nanotechnology, and the effect of nanofiber diameter on in vitro cell-seeding efficiency and the in vivo response after implantation in an autogenous large-animal model were evaluated.

Methods: Canine chondrocytes were isolated and seeded onto polyglycolic acid fabric ranging from 0.

What is the best strategy for Asians with involutional entropion?

Background: Even though many different procedures have been proposed to involutional entropion, there is no established criterion standard in terms of the choice of the operative method. Considering the anatomical difference of the lower eyelid structure between Asians and whites, we evaluated the effectiveness of our surgical approach to involutional entropion exclusively for Japanese patients.

Methods: Twenty-one patients complained of discomfort around the eye, and they also suffered from foreign body sensation, ocular pain, epiphora, and photophobia.

Long-term result of a biodegradable osteo-inductive copolymer for the treatment of orbital blowout fracture.

Purpose: We have recently reconstructed the orbital wall using a bioabsorbable osteo-inductive copolymer as a support material for the bone defects in patients with orbital blowout fracture. The purpose of this study was to investigate a 2-year follow-up after implantation.

Material And Methods: In order to investigate the efficacy and safety of the bioabsorbable osteo-inductive copolymer HA-P(LA/CL), hydroxyapatite-poly(l-lactide-ε-caprolactone), we measured CT density of the implanted copolymers in 7 patients at such time points as 1 week, 6 months and 2 years after surgery along with the long-term outcomes with regard to postoperative complications.

Usefulness of polyglycolic acid-polypropylene composite scaffolds for three-dimensional cartilage regeneration in a large-animal autograft model.

Background: Approaches to auricular reconstruction have shown improved outcome when a basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) slow-release system and fibrin spraying are combined with biodegradable polymers. More complex, three-dimensional structures, such as those that replicate the human auricle, are often lost because of biodegradation of the synthetic scaffold.

Methods: To improve the mechanical strength of regenerated cartilage, the authors grafted canine autologous chondrocytes after seeding onto scaffolds made of a complex of polyglycolic acid and polypropylene, incorporating a slow-release bFGF system with a fibrin spray coating.

Mozart ear: diagnosis, treatment, and literature review.

Mozart ear is a congenital auricular deformity, which is mainly characterized by a bulging appearance of the anterosuperior portion of the auricle, a convexly protruded cavum conchae, and a slit-like narrowing of the orifice of the external auditory meatus. It is said to be uncommon, and because no one has yet fully described neither the disease nor the treatment, the concept of Mozart ear has not been unified. This report describes a case of a 13-year-old girl presented with an unusual congenital deformity which showed the features of Mozart ear.

Randomized controlled trial of the application of topical b-FGF-impregnated gelatin microspheres to improve tissue survival in subzone II fingertip amputations.

We undertook a randomized controlled trial of subzone II fingertip amputations, comparing standard treatment with topical application of gelatin microspheres prepared with basic fibroblast growth factor (b-FGF) to provide a slow, sustained release of b-FGF with microsphere degradation. Forty-eight digits from 42 patients were randomized into the two study arms. The microspheres were applied as a paste on exposed tissue surfaces, whereas standard treatment was without any topical treatment.