[The latissimus dorsi territory: a privileged donor site]

The latissimus dorsi is one of the most used donor areas in various fields of reconstructive surgery. After a short historical review, the main anatomical features, classical as well as new, are outlined in the view of reconstructive procedures. If it now demonstrated that the exceptional reliability of this myocutaneous territory allows to perform operations that belong to the routine like taking part in mammary reconstructions or to more sophisticated techniques, like in head and neck reconstruction. Among future prospects, we will consider the total mammary reconstruction and the cardiomyoplasty.