Complications of dermal graft protection of carotid artery

The efficacy of autogenous dermal grafts for carotid artery protection in head and neck surgery has been investigated experimentally and propounded clinically. A review of 194 dermal grafts from 1966 to 1972 at the otolaryngology service of Washington University Medical Center revealed two broad categories of complications that were unique to dermal graft protection of the carotid artery. Two cases of inclusion cysts that developed two years after implantation of the dermal graft were classified as a complication secondary to technical problems of taking the graft. The second category of complications arose as a result of epithelialization of the exposed dermal graft. While the overall incidence of complications that were attributable to the dermal graft was approximately 6%, autogenous dermis continues to provide an excellent method for carotid artery protection.