Experince of supermicrosurgical lymphaticovenular anastomosis with intraoperative indocyanine green lymphangiography

Objective To figure out the clinical application value of indocyanine green (ICG) lymphangiography in supermicrosurgical lymphaticovenular anastomosis. Methods A total of 6 supermicrosurgical lymphaticovenular anastomosis with intraoperative ICG lymphangiography were performed during April 2015 to May 2017 and were analyzed retrospectively. All the cases are female (range from 30 to 54 years old, median of 46.5 years old), including 3 cases for prevention and 3 cases for treatment of lymphedema. Results A total 6 supermicrosurgical lymphaticovenular anastomosis were performed with intraoperative ICG lymphangiography to make sure the influx of lymph fluid to the vein. During the median of 23 months follow-up (range from 7 to 32 months), the 3 preventive cases did not show upper limb lymphedema and the 3 theraputic cases were relieved at different levels. Conclusions Intraoperative ICG lymphangiography can provide real-time information to locate suitable lymph vessels and ascertain the anastomotic patency in supermicrosurgical lymphaticovenular anastomosis, thus improve the operation effectiveness. Key words: Indocyanine green; Lymphedema; Lymphaticovenular anastomosis