The pattern and management of traumatic soft tissue injuries of the lower limb

38 cases of soft tissue injuries of the lower limb seen in the Department of Plastic Surgery, Singapore General Hospital are reviewed. The pattern of soft tissue trauma reveals that the incidence is highest in the young male population between the ages of 20-30 years. Road traffic accidents are the commonest cause of trauma and the pedestrian is the most frequent victim. The commonest site of lower limb involvement is the leg and the majority of the cases of bone exposure following trauma are due to degloving injuries. The reconstructive procedures used include split-skin grafts, cross-leg flap, local transposition flap, muscle transposition flap, dorsalis pedis island flap and free groin flap. Split-skin graft and cross-leg flap procedures accounted for the management of 75% of the cases in this series.