ABSTRACT
Objective The anterior-lateral defect of foot that lost one of the three supporting point of foot can lead to collapse of the lateral longitudinal arch, overload of the first metatarsal heads, and painful callus formation. It is meaningful to investigate the effect of reconstructing the lateral forefoot defect with pedical fibular osteoseptocutaneous flap. Methods From March 1989 to June 2008, there were 38 patients with anterior-lateral defect of foot were constructed. The supporting point with the local distal based pedical fibular osteoseptocutaneous flap was constracted. Results All the 38 flaps survived. All 38 patients had been followed up from 6 months to 10 years (mean 23.5 months) postoperatively. The constructed supporting point of the foot was functional. The patients could walk freely with no pain, and was satisfied with the operation. Assessed with the rating system for foot and ankle established by the American Orthopaedic Foot And Anke Society, 8 patients got a score above 85, 23 patients between 75 to 85, 7 patients between 60 to 75. Conclusion It is effective that transferring local distal based pedical fibular osteoseptocutaneous flap to repair the anterior-lateral defect of foot.