The bipedicled latissimus dorsi myocutaneous free flap: clinical experience with 53 patients

The Latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap is a valuable workhorse of the microsurgeon, especially in closing large body defects. One of the pitfalls in harvesting the flap, is particularly in its inferior aspect which may be unreliable. Here we report a series of 53 patients who were undergone bipedicled free latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous free flaps for extensive tissue defects. The age of patients were between 5 and 64 and all of them were males. The wound sizes in these patients ranged between 31-35 x 10-12 cm and flap dimensions were between 38-48 x 6-8 cm. Perforator branches of the 10th intercostal vessels were dissected and supercharged to the flaps to reduce the risk of ischemia of the inferior cutaneous extensions. The secondary pedicles were anastomosed to recipient vessels other than the primary pedicles. Recipient areas were consisted of lower extremities. Four patients suffered of early arterial failure in the major pedicle and all revisions were successfully attempted. Neither sign of venous congestion nor arterial insufficiency were observed at the inferior cutaneous extensions of the flaps, and all defects were reconstructed successfully. All donor sites were primarily closed, only two patients suffered from a minor area of superficial epidermal loss at the donor site, without suffering any adjunct complications. In conclusion coverage of large defects can be safely performed with extending the skin paddle of latissimus dorsi flap as a bipedicled free flap.