Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 19, 2026
Murine Full-thickness Skin Transplantation
Published on: January 2, 2017
Postauricular skin: an excellent donor site for split-thickness skin grafts for the head, neck, and upper chest
Camile L Hexsel1, Michael Loosemore, Leonard H Goldberg
1*Department of Dermatology, The Methodist Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical College, DermSurgery Associates, Houston, Texas; †Department of Dermatology, Prohealth Care Medical Associates, Waukesha County, Wisconsin; ‡Department of Dermatology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Background:
Postauricular skin is one of the potential donor sites for split-thickness skin grafts (STSGs).
Objective:
To objectively quantify how postauricular donor sites heal after STSG harvesting.
Materials And Methods:
A cohort of 39 Mohs micrographic surgery patients repaired with STSGs (total 41 surgical defects) was established. Scars resulting from postauricular donor site harvesting were objectively quantified by applying the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS), in which healing of scars is ranked from 0 (best possible outcome) to 13 (worst possible outcome).
Results:
Vancouver Scar Scale scores were 1.87 for sites followed for ≥6 months (n = 16), 3 for sites followed for 3 to 6 months (n = 7), and 1.61 for sites followed for 6 to 11 weeks (n = 18). Four patients developed mild hypertrophic scarring that resolved spontaneously or with intralesional triamcinolone injections at a concentration of 10 mg/mL.
Conclusion:
The postauricular skin is an excellent donor site for small-to-moderate sized STSGs (<10 cm). The donor sites healed well, as noted by the low scores on the VSS consistent with mild changes in erythema, pigmentation, and texture. The incidence of hypertrophic scarring was low and resolved with observation or treatment.
