Intraoperative Imaging of Nipple Perfusion Patterns and Ischemic Complications in Nipple-Sparing Mastectomies

Background Nipple-sparing mastectomies (NSM) have gained acceptance in the field of breast oncology. Ischemic complications involving the nipple–areolar complex (NAC) occur in 3–37 % of cases. Skin perfusion can be monitored intraoperatively using indocyanine green (IC-GREEN™, ICG) and a specialized infrared camera–computer system (SPY Elite™). The blood flow pattern to the breast skin and the NAC were evaluated and a classification scheme was developed.