Fate of a Second Perforator Free Flap Used to Salvage Failure of the First Perforator Free Flap

Abstract

Perforator flaps should no longer be considered an exotic or complicated option for microsurgical tissue transfer. However, despite a proper design and attention to detail, as with any free flap, failure can be anticipated sometimes to occur. If a free flap is then still indicated, the big question is what to do next? In our series of 314 perforator free flaps over the past decade, 21 (7%) total failures occurred. A second free flap was attempted for 17 (81%) of these cases. Overall these were successful for 16 (94%) patients, including 11 perforator free flaps that were 100% successful. The anterolateral thigh (ALT) free flap proved to be the “workhorse” alternative. It can be concluded that if failure of a free flap can best be rectified by a second free flap, failure of a perforator free flap can also be reliably salvaged by a second perforator free flap.

Keywords

failed free flaps - perforator flaps - anterolateral thigh flap

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