Intraoral Anastomosis of Free Fibular Flap for Reconstruction of Maxillofacial Defect

Reconstruction of maxillofacial defect is challenging in maxillofacial surgery. Currently, microvascular anastomosis technique is widely used in reconstruction surgery of maxillofacial defects. The neck recipient vessels are used for conventional microvascular anastomosis. This will produce new incision in neck. To avoid the incision in neck, a new technology of anastomosis is revealed, which using the intraoral approach (ITA). Furthermore, ITA technique can also help when the length of vessel pedicle is short and reduce the injury risk of facial nerve. In this paper, we used intraoral anastomosis technique for anterior maxillofacial reconstruction. The defect was reconstructed with free microvascular fibular flap by anastomosis to the facial vessels by ITA technology. The primary aim of the study was to reveal the reliability and outcomes of ITA for maxillofacial defect reconstruction. Our results reveal that ITA is a reliable technique that could avoid additional external incisions in maxillofacial defects.