Comparison of harvesting anterolateral thigh flap in medial and lateral approaches

Objective To investigate the results of defect reconstruction using anterolateral thigh free flap in medial and lateral approaches. Methods We reviewed the soft tissue defect reconstruction in 200 patients from February 2010 to June 2014 with anterolateral thigh flap in medial or lateral approach, to compare the operative time and donor site morbidity. Results The mean time of flap raising in medial group was (45±4.5)minutes, while in lateral group was (65±3.5)minutes. In medial group, fascial lata was closed directly in 39 cases (39%), while fascial lata was closed directly in all the cases (100%) in lateral group. All the 200 flaps survived uneventfully. All the donor sites healed smoothly. No infection occurred. An 8 to 32 months follow-up revealed a high satisfactory rate from the patients. No sensory deficit or functional impairment was noted in the donor sites. Conclusions Both in medial and lateral approach can achieve safely harvesting free anterolateral thigh flap. Key words: Surgical flaps; Thigh/SU