Clinical study of submental artery island myocutaneous flap for reconstruction of oral and maxillofacial defects following operation

Objective To evaluate the outcome and indication of the reconstruction of oral and maxillofacial postoperative defects by submental artery island myoeutaneous flaps. Methods Sixty eight cases with the reconstruction of oral and maxillofacial defects by submental artery island myocutaneous flaps from January 2006 to May 2010 were analysed retrospectively. Primary lesions included carcinomas origining from tongue （28 cases）, palate （13 cases）, mouth floor （9 cases）, gingiva （4 cases）, buccal mucosa （6 cases） , lip （3 cases） , and other malignant or benign tumors （5 cases）. The ages ranged from 25 to 84 years （mean 58 years）; 47 males and 21 females. The sizes of skin paddle varied from a minimum of 4 cm ×4 cm to a maximum of 15 cm × 10 cm. Results Of the 68 flaps, 62 were survival, 4 had partial necrosis but healed with treatments, and 2 failed due to complete necrosis. Appearance and functions of recipient sites were satisfactory. The followed-up time was 3 - 24 months, local recurrence occurred in 5 cases and cervical lymph node metastases were found in 15 patients. Conclusion Submental island flap is reliable for the reconstruction of postoperative defects in early oral cancer without regional lymph node metastasis or in benign tumor. Key words: Reconstructive surgical procedures; Surgical flaps; Jaw; Face