Augmentation of surviving flap area by intraarterial vasodilators administered through implantable pumps

Using the implantable Infusaid Model 300 pump, several vasodilators (prostaglandin E1, isoxsuprine, bradykinin, trimethaphan, and reserpine) were infused intraarterially into an abdominal island flap in the rabbit. All produced a large increase in flap surviving area over saline controls at forty-eight hours, measuring as high as a 2.8-fold increase in random portions of the flap with prostaglandin E1. The agents possessed differing modes of action but had the common property of vasodilatation. The results raise questions concerning the possible physiological role of endogenous prostaglandins in the surgical delay phenomenon. The Infusaid pump was a valuable tool in the study and was well tolerated by the animals.