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Updated: Apr 15, 2026
Engineered Vascularized Muscle Flap
Published on: January 11, 2016
Does a muscle flap accelerate wound healing of gastric wall defects compared with an omental flap?
Masashi Hishida1, Kazuhiro Toriyama2, Shunjiro Yagi2
1Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Kasugai Municipal Hospital, 1-1-1 Takagi-cho, Kasugai 486-8510, Japan; Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Turumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-8550, Japan.
Introduction:
Most often used for reconstruction at superficial sites, a muscle flap recently was reported to promote clinical wound healing in a duodenal defect. We therefore examined whether a muscle flap could promote wound healing comparably to an omental flap in rats with gastric wall defects.
Methods:
After perforation of the centre of the anterior gastric wall, rats were divided into 2 groups. In the muscle group, a muscle flap was fixed to the defect; in the omentum group, an omental flap was placed over the defect. We histopathologically compared tissue responses during gastric wall healing.
Results:
While stratified villi had completely covered the defect by day 7 in both groups, scar maturation differed. Scar tissue persisted in the muscle group, but was gradually replaced by adipose tissue in the omentum group.
Discussion:
Both muscle and omental flaps accelerated gastric wall wound healing.
Conclusion:
A muscle flap is an excellent alternative for repair of gastric defects when no omental flap is available.
