Abstract
Background This study aimed to investigate the association between the use of different flaps,
including random and axial pattern flaps, and sensory recovery following finger soft
tissue reconstruction using local pedicle flaps.
Methods A longitudinal study was conducted on 115 patients with 130 finger soft tissue defects
treated with local pedicle flaps between December 2016 and December 2020. Assessments
were made at early postsurgery (119 flaps), 3 months postsurgery (110 soft tissue
defects), and 6 months postsurgery (94 soft tissue defects). Sensory recovery outcomes
were compared between soft tissue defects reconstructed using random and axial pattern
flaps.
Results In the early postsurgery period, there was a significantly higher prevalence of a
static sense of two-point discrimination (s2PD) ≤6 mm among fingers with random pattern
flaps (96.2%) than among fingers with axial pattern flaps (64.5%). The probability
of s2PD ≤6 mm at the donor and recipient sites with the direct flap was 75.5% and
25.5%, respectively, which was significantly higher than that with the reversed flap.
After 6 months, there was a significant difference in sensory recovery compared to
that at 3 months postsurgery but not between different flap types.
Conclusion Sensory recovery after reconstruction was observed with all flap types, and better
sensory recovery can be achieved in a shorter time postsurgery using random pattern
flaps.
Keywords
random pattern flap - axial pattern flap - sensory recovery - soft tissue defects
