Objective To summarize the clinical effects of the repairing methods for deep wounds of the foot and ankle. Methods From March 2002 to June 2006, 49 patients with skin and deep tissue defects of the foot and ankle underwent the repairing treatment. Of them, 36 were males and 13 were females, aged 16 to 67 years( 39 years on average). The causes of injuries included mangled injury in 24 cases, high fall injury in 9 cases, cut injury in 7 cases, malignant soft tissue tumor in 5 cases, decubital ulcer in 2 cases, and electric burn in 2 cases. Of the 49 cases, 19 were in left side and 30 in right side. The defect size of skin ranged from 3 cm×2 cm to 20 cm×15 cm and deep tissue injuries were accompanied by defects of tendon and ligament in 24 cases, by damage of joint in 12 cases, and by bone defect in 9 cases, and 35 of them had infections, and 2 of them had diabetes of stage 2. The time between the injury and surgery ranged from 4 hours to 1 year.The wounds were repaired separately by local flap(3 cm×3 cm to 6 cm×4 cm) in 15 cases, local island flap(8 cm×5 cm to 12 cm×7 cm) in 25 cases, free flap(15 cm×11 cm to 24 cm×17 cm) in 4 cases, and cross leg flap(5 cm×4 cm to 8 cm×6 cm) in 5 cases. In 24 cases of defects of tendon and ligament, 15 underwent the reconstruction in one-stage operations,9 in two-satge operation.In 9 cases accompanied by bone defect, twostage bone grafting (12-64 g) was given after wound healed. Results All of the 49 flaps survived. Fortysix healed by the first intention and 3 with distal edge necrosis healed after skin grafting. Two patients with sinus formation healed after 68 months of dressing change. All the cases were followed up 6 months to 3 years, and all the flaps were well developed, the functions of the foot and ankle were satisfactory. Conclusion It can get an excellent result of appearance and function recovery repairing deep wounds of the foot and ankle with proper flaps in earlier time.
Objective To explore a suitable repairing method for skin defects of the foot and ankle, and to evaluate the therapeutic effects of the different repairing methods. Methods From January 2000 to October 2005, 36 patients with skin defects of the foot and ankle underwentthe repairing treatment, of whom 35 were males and 1 was female, aged 5-62 years, averaged 38 years. Of the 36 patients, 12 had an injury by a machine, 22 had a traffic accident, 1 had an infection, and 1 had a cold injury. And the injuries involved the dorsum of the foot, heel, forefoot, and medial or lateral malleolus. The injuries were respectively treated by 2 different repairing methods, the repair with the coverage by the lateral supramalleolar flaps and the repair with the coverage by the reverse sural neurocutaneous flaps. The skin defectsranged in area from 5 cm×4 cm to 20 cm×10 cm. The lateral supramalleolar flapwas used in 15 patients (15 flaps) with a flap area of 5 cm×4 cm-15 cm×8 cm,and the reverse sural neurocutaneous flap was used in 21 patients (22 flaps) with a flap area of 6 cm×4 cm20 cm×10 cm. We retrospectively observed the therapeutic results and compared the success rates of the two methods. Results Of the 36 patients, 15 underwent the repair with the coverage by 15 lateral supramalleolar flaps; 10 achieved a complete survival of the flaps, 2 developed an epidermal necrosis over the distal part, and 3 developed a complete necrosis.The other 21 patients underwent the repair with the coverage by 22 reverse sural neurocutaneous flaps. Of the 22 flaps, 21 had a complete survival, and only 1 failed to survive. The comparison revealed that there was no difference in the color, texture, and contour of the flaps between the 2 repaired groups. And the patients in the 2 groups were equally satisfied with the repairing treatments. The sensation of the flaps recovered to S0-S1. Conclusion The repairing of the foot and ankle skin defects with the coverage by the lateral supramalleolar flaps or by the reverse sural neurocutaneous flaps can achieve a similar good therapeutic result. However, the repair with the lateral supramalleolarflaps is more suitable for the skin defect of a smaller area over the medial orlateral malleolus, or the proximal dorsum of the foot; the repair with the reverse sural neurocutaneous flaps is more suitable for the skin defect of a larger area over the foot and ankle without serious destruction of the malleolar arterial rete.
Objective To evaluate the short-term effectiveness of Ilizarov technique combined with steel needle internal fixation in treating Charcot neuroarthropathy (CN) of the foot and ankle. Methods Between June 2020 and December 2023, 12 patients with Eichenholtz stage Ⅲ CN of the foot and ankle were treated with Ilizarov technique and steel needle internal fixation. There were 9 males and 3 females with an average age of 48.6 years (range, 19-66 years). The disease duration ranged from 1 to 16 months (mean, 6.8 months). Ankle joint involvement predominated in 7 cases, while midfoot involvement occurred in 5 cases; 3 cases presented with skin ulceration and soft tissue infection. Preoperative American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score was 31.2±9.0, 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36)-Physical Component Summary (PCS) score was 32.6±6.8, and Mental Component Summary (MCS) score was 47.8±8.4. Postoperative assessments included wound healing, regular X-ray film/CT evaluations of fusion status, and effectiveness via AOFAS and SF-36-PCS, MCS scores. ResultsAll operations were successfully completed without neurovascular complication. Two patients experienced delayed wound healing requiring intervention, and the others achieved primary healing. All patients were followed up 15-43 months (mean, 23.3 months). Imaging confirmed successful joint fusion within 13-21 weeks (mean, 16.8 weeks). At last follow-up, the AOFAS score was 72.5±6.4, and the SF-36-PCS and MCS scores were 63.2±8.4 and 76.7±5.3, respectively, all of which improved compared to preoperative levels, with significant differences (P<0.05). Conclusion Ilizarov technique combined with steel needle internal fixation effectively restores walking function and achieves satisfactory short-term effectiveness in CN of the foot and ankle.
Objective To evaluate the clinical outcomes of free perforator flaps combined with skin graft for reconstruction of ankle and foot soft tissue defects. Methods Between June 2014 and October 2015, 20 cases of ankle and foot soft tissue defects were treated. There were 16 males and 4 females, aged from 19 to 61 years (mean, 43.3 years). Injury was caused by traffic accident in 7 cases, by crashing in 9 cases, and machine twist in 4 cases. The locations were the ankle in 6 cases, the heel in 3 cases, the dorsum pedis in 4 cases, and the plantar forefoot in 7 cases of avulsion injury after toes amputation. The size of wound ranged from 15 cm×10 cm to 27 cm×18 cm. The time from injury to treatment was from 11 to 52 days (mean, 27 days). The anterolateral thigh perforator flap was used in 11 cases, thoracodorsal antery perforator flap in 3 cases, medial sural artery perforator flap in 4 cases, deep inferior epigastric perforator flap in 1 case, and anteromedial thigh perforator flap in 1 case, including 5 chimeric perforator flaps, 5 polyfoliate perforator flaps, 3 flow-through perforator flaps, and 3 conjoined perforator flaps. The size of the perforator flap ranged from 10.0 cm×6.5 cm to 36.0 cm×8.0 cm, the size of skin graft from 5 cm×3 cm to 18 cm×12 cm. Results Venous crisis occurred in 2 flaps which survived after symptomatic treatment; 18 flaps survived successfully and skin grafting healed well. The follow-up time ranged 4-18 months (mean, 8.3 months). The flaps had good appearance, texture and color, without infection. The patients could walk normally and do daily activities. Only linear scars were observed at the donor sites. Conclusion Free perforator flap can be used to reconstruct defects in the ankle and foot, especially in the weight-bearing area of the plantar forefoot. A combination of free perforator flap and skin graft is ideal in reconstruction of great soft tissue defects in the ankle and foot.
Objective To investigate the effectiveness of perforator propeller flap of lower limb in the treatment of foot and ankle defect in children. Methods The clinical data of 28 children with foot and ankle defect treated with perforator propeller flap of lower limb between January 2018 and January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 18 boys and 10 girls with an average age of 7.3 years (range, 6-14 years). There were 8 cases of traffic accident injury and 20 cases of chronic infection wound. The disease duration was 2-4 months, with an average of 2.8 months. After thorough debridement, the residual wound size ranged from 5 cm×4 cm to 9 cm×5 cm. Repairing was performed after 7-28 days of the infection in control. According to the location, size, and shape of the wound, the perforating vessels were located by ultrasonic Doppler, and the perforator propeller flap (area ranged from 6 cm×5 cm to 11 cm×6 cm) was designed and harvested to repair the wound. Flap transfer combined with free split-thickness skin graft covered the wound in 2 cases. The donor site was sutured directly (22 cases) or repaired with skin graft (6 cases). Results Twenty-six flaps survived, of which 20 cases were in primary healing, and 6 cases had epidermal necrosis at the end of small paddle, which healed after dressing change. Necrosis occurred in 2 cases due to venous crisis which healed after anterolateral femoral flap free transplantation. Primary wound healing was achieved in donor site. All 28 children were followed up 6-24 months (mean, 10.5 months). The texture, shape, and motor function of the lower limb was satisfactory. At last follow-up, the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Association (AOFAS) score was 89.8±8.0, which was significantly different from the preoperative score (79.6±10.4) (t=−11.205, P<0.001); 20 cases were excellent, 6 cases were good, and 2 cases were poor, and the excellent and good rate was 92.8%. ConclusionThe perforator propeller flap of lower limb in children has its own characteristics. It is a reliable method to repair the foot and ankle defect in children.
ObjectiveTo investigate clinical application of the free peroneal artery perforator flap in soft tissue defect of foot and ankle.MethodsThe clinical data of 18 patients with soft tissue defects of foot and ankle who were repaired with free peroneal artery perforator flaps between March 2019 and March 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. Among them, there were 11 males and 7 females; the age ranged from 21 to 58 years, with an average age of 45 years. The defect was located in the ankle in 2 cases, in the hindfoot in 4 cases, in the midfoot in 5 cases, and in the forefoot in 7 cases. The causes of injury included 11 cases of traffic accident, 4 cases of machine injuries, 3 cases of infection and necrosis after internal fixation. The time from injury to flap repair was 12-48 days, with an average of 24 days. The range of wound was 3 cm×3 cm to 15 cm×8 cm, and the range of skin flap was 4 cm×3 cm to 16 cm×9 cm. The flap harvesting time, operation time, intraoperative blood loss, and complications were recorded; the flap survival and patient satisfaction were observed during follow-up; and the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) foot function score was used to evaluate the foot function.ResultsThe flap harvesting time was 15-33 minutes (mean, 22 minutes); the operation time was 120-160 minutes (mean, 150 minutes); the intraoperative blood loss was 90-180 mL (mean, 120 mL). There were 3 cases of vascular crisis after operation, including 2 cases of arterial crisis, which survived after vascular exploration and vein graft repair; 1 case of venous crisis, partial necrosis of the skin flap, and skin grafting to cover the wound after repeated debridement. The remaining 15 skin flaps survived completely. All patients were followed up 6 months. The skin flaps were in good shape without obvious bloat. According to the AOFAS foot function score, 5 cases were excellent, 10 cases were good, and 3 cases were fair. The excellent and good rate was 83.3%.ConclusionThe free peroneal artery perforator flap is easy to harvest, the shape and size of the flap are easy to design, and it does not damage the main blood vessels of the limb. The appearance and function of the limbs are satisfactory after operation. It can be widely used in the repair of soft tissue defects of the foot and ankle.