An Atraumatic Technique For Transposition Of Veins And Vascular Pedicles Of Free Flaps

摘要

Vessel transfer through a subcutaneous tunnel is a frequent procedure. We report on a modification on a previously reported method. Technique Passing vein grafts and the vascular pedicles of free flaps through a subcutaneous tunnel can be a time consuming process and may damage the vessels. For several years, the senior author of this article has used a rapid and relatively atraumatic technique to achieve this, modifying a previously published method (1).To transfer a vessel, the tip of a Yankauer sucker is gently pushed through the subcutaneous tissues, between the two sites of interest. The sucker is left in place creating a tunnel. Rarely, the Yankauer cannot be passed through easily and sharp dissection is required. Once the Yankaeur is in the correct position, the vein graft/pedicle is placed carefully into the open end of the sucker (Figure 1).