Effects of a vitamin pool (vitamins A, E, and C) on the tissue necrosis process: experimental study on rats

During surgical procedures on the epidermis, either aesthetic or reconstructive, the medical literature shows that certain technical standards and skin flap proportions should be followed, unless the risk of necrosis increases, in different degrees, directly related to the trauma. This study evaluates the evolution of skin flaps on the dorsum of rats treated with a vitamin pool (VP) (vitamins A, E, and C). Twenty-six rats, divided into two groups, were used: (A) the treated group (13 specimens), in which we performed a dorsal skin flap and applied the VP, and (B) the control group (13 specimens), in which we performed a flap on the dorsum without application of the VP. Our results demonstrate that, at the macroscopic level, the group treated with the VP had more tissue sufferance, whereas at the microscopic level, small statistical differences were observed between the groups and also between the vertex and the middle of the flap. Despite these small differences, better results were obtained in group A, showing that in this study the clinical aspect did not correspond to the histological features.