The Clinical Applications Of Submental Artery Perforator Flap And Anatomical Study

A perforator flap is a flap which depends on a perforator vessel that is a small vessel which branches off from a larger/main blood vessel and perforates (penetrates through or tracks through) a muscle to reach the overlying skin and fat. Perforator flaps have become increasingly popular in reconstructive microsurgery because it can reserve the muscle, its low mobility and achieve better contour. Reconstruction of facial defects requires careful planning to achieve the best possible contour, color, and texture match. The submental flap is a good option.Objective:(1)Characteristics as reliable, thin and good color match makes the submental flap a versatile option in head and neck reconstruction. With blood vessel perfusion and micro-dissection, this research provides more detailed and complete anatomical and morphological basis for the operation of facial defect repair using the submental artery perforator flaps (2) we applied in the clinical cases using submental artery perforator flaps and appraise the stability and prospect of clinical applications.Method:We used blood vessels' perfusion in 4 formalin-fixed adult cadavers and measured detailed anatomical data about the location, branch, relationship of the submental vessels and its surrounding, the relationship between the perforator artery and the anterior belly of the diagastric muscles. Through the observation of the clinical cases, We summarized and followed up regularly on there clinical cases in order to evaluate the clinical values of the flaps.Results:Tab.1 Measurement of the submental vessels and their perforators (Mean±SD)Conclusion:The submental artery is a constant and reliable artery which is the largest branch of the facial artery in the neck. The location and course of the submental artery is relatively constant. Reliable perforators are always present. Their locations are constant at each border of the anterior digastric belly but the locations are nor always symmetric on both sides of the submental territory. The perforators at the outboard of the anterior digastric belly are 68.75%, inboard are 32.25%。...