Flap Prefabrication and Stem Cell–Assisted Tissue Expansion

• DOI: 10.1097/01.scs.0000436743.75289.6b
• Publication Date: 2014-01-09T11:04:43Z
• Authors: QingFeng Li; Tao Zan; Haizhou Li; Shuangbai Zhou; Bin Gu; Kai Liu; Feng Xie; Yun Xie
• Keywords: Adult; Male; Reoperation; Microsurgery; Adolescent; Tissue Expansion; Skin Transplantation; Middle Aged; Plastic Surgery Procedures; Young Adult; 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Face; Burns, Chemical; Humans; Regeneration; Female; Burns; Facial Injuries; Perforator Flap; Bone Marrow Transplantation

Total face skin and soft-tissue defects remain one of the biggest challenges in reconstructive surgery. Reconstruction of the entire face with uniform coverage and delicate features is difficult to achieve. To avoid the patchwork result seen in multiple flaps and skin grafts, 1 monoblock flap that has similar color, texture, and thickness might be an ideal option to minimize the incisional scars and several surgical procedures but is unavailable with current approaches because of the lack of sufficient matched tissue and the unreliable blood supply for such a large flap. To acquire a monoblock flap for full face reconstruction, we combine the prefabricated flaps, skin overexpansion, and bone marrow mononuclear stem cell transplantation for total facial resurfacing. In this article, we present our experience from our case series that provides universally matched skin and near-normal facial contour. It is a reliable and an excellent reconstructive option for massive facial skin defect.