No drains in reduction mammaplasty - a systematic review.

Breast reduction mammaplasty is the only effective therapeutic intervention for patients with symptomatic breast hypertrophy. In this procedure, closed suction drains have become a standard of care, while the literature supporting use of drains is lacking. In fact, with emerging data we found out that drains might not be so necessary. This review aimed to systematically compare the number of complications in drained and undrained breasts and to evaluate the safety of omitting drains in reduction mammaplasty in clinical practice. A systematic review of literature was conducted identifying all studies on drainage in reduction mammaplasty. The analysed databases revealed 13 eligible studies to be included in this review. There were 308 drained breasts and 859 undrained breasts in total in patients from 16 to 73 years of age. The resected tissue weight per side fluctuated from 108 to 1,296 grams. In total, there was only 2.4% incidence of haematoma complications in undrained breasts and 3.9% in drained breasts. Closed suction drains are still being routinely used in reduction mammaplasty, although aborting drain use is proven to be not only safe, but advantageous. The clear benefit is increased patient comfort, shortened hospital stay, decreased cost of the procedure and nurse care, and decreased rate of complications.

Antibiotic therapy in the treatment of skin abscess meta-analysis.

Skin abscess is one of the most common infections of skin and soft tissues. Incision and drainage under local anesthesia is the mainstay of treatment. Although previous small-scale studies failed to show a benefit of antibiotics in patients with simple abscesses, the use of antibiotic therapy is still encountered in the treatment of uncomplicated skin abscesses in our practice. The purpose of our study was to evaluate existing data assessing the effect of adjuvant antibiotic therapy on abscess management. Although as indicated by two recent multicenter studies, antibiotics may provide a positive effect in the management, it is important to consider the risk of resistance associated with antibiotic overuse and to approach each case individually.

The CD34+ Cell Number Alone Predicts Retention of the Human Fat-Graft Volume in a Nude Mouse Model.

Prediction of the final transferred fat volume is essential for the success of fat grafting, but remains elusive. Between 20 and 80 % of the initial transplanted volume can be reabsorbed. Although graft survival has many determinants, CD34+ progenitor cells from the vascular stroma of adipose tissue play a central role by promoting growth of blood vessels and adipocytes. We aimed to verify the hypothesis that a higher proportion of total CD34+ cells in the transplant is associated with better preservation of the graft volume. Human lipoaspirates from 16 patients were processed by centrifugation and two grafts per donor were subcutaneously injected into 32 nude mice in 1 ml volumes in the right upper flank area. The volume of each graft was measured using a preclinical MRI scanner immediately after grafting and at three months. The percentage of CD34+ cells in the graft before implantation was determined by flow cytometry. The final graft volume at three months after implantation directly correlated with the percentage of CD34+ cells in the grafted material (r = 0.637, P = 0.019). The minimum retention of the fat graft was 28 % and the maximum retention was 81 %, with an average of 54 %. Our study found that fat retention after fat transfer directly correlated with the fraction of CD34+ cells in the graft. The simple and fast determination of the CD34+ cell percentage on site can help predicting outcomes of fat transplantation.

AUTOLOGOUS FAT TRANSFER, BREAST LIPOMODELLING AND FAT TRANSFER TO THE FACE: CURRENT GOLD STANDARDS AND EMERGING NEW DATA.

Autologous fat transfer techniques have experienced tremendous boom in the recent years. Plastic surgeons use these techniques to enhance both the features of the face and of the body. Over the years, controversies concerning fat harvesting, fat processing and fat injection came up. The authors of this review article describe their own experience with fat harvesting, processing and injection and show some of their own results. In addition, they discuss contemporary data from literature regarding the use and complications of fat grafting to the most common areas treated with fat grafting: breast and face.

PULMONARY EMBOLISM AFTER ABDOMINOPLASTY - ARE WE REALLY ABLE TO AVOID ALL COMPLICATIONS? CASE REPORTS AND LITERATURE REVIEW.

Pulmonary embolism is a potentially lethal complication in plastic surgery patients. About 34% of the members of American Society of Plastic Surgery have diagnosed pulmonary embolism in their patients, and 7% had experienced at least 1 death due to this complication. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons Executive Committee approved the Venous Thromboembolism Task Force Report. The members agreed that there was not enough evidence to make all-inclusive recommendations for plastic surgery deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism prophylaxis, but released the 2005 Caprini Scale accompanied by the Task Force recommendations for use in plastic surgery. It is generally strongly advised to use appropriate prophylactic measures against venous thromboembolism in all surgical procedures. However, even then we cannot completely avoid this serious complication.

The history and safety of breast implants.

Breast implants are medical devices used for augmentation of the breast, to reconstruct the breast after mastectomy and to correct breast asymmetry. The breast prostheses are likely the most frequently used medical implants. The evolution of modern silicone breast implants was not straightforward and is characterised with a lot of medical, forensic and public attention. Currently it is sufficiently established that implants are safe and can be used for breast reconstruction and aesthetic augmentation. Prosthesis can rupture and produce local symptoms but there is no evidence that silicone breast implants can be of any health hazards for the patients.

Haemophilia - unexpected complication of rhinoplasty.

Authors report a case of unexpected postoperative bleeding after an aesthetic rhinoplasty that was due to previously undiagnosed asymptomatic haemophilia.

[Reconstruction of complex abdominal wall defects using the component separation technique]. / Rekonstrukce rozsáhlých defektu steny brisní metodou separace komponentu

INTRODUCTION: Reconstruction of complex abdominal wall defects is among the most demanding procedures in reconstructive surgery. Introduction of the method of component separation represents the most significant advance in the care of these patients. We present our experience with the component separation technique on a series of 44 patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed patients operated on between 2009 and 2012. The inclusion criterion was the use of the component separation technique in the treatment of abdominal wall defect. The scoring criteria were recurrent hernia, wound hematoma, wound infection, skin necrosis and secondary healing. RESULTS: We operated on 44 patients in the above period. The etiology of the defects was most frequently hernia in the scar after midline laparotomy (n = 29; 66%) and after incision across the epigastrium for total gastrectomy (n = 3; 7%). The other defects (n = 12; 27%) were caused by a wide diastasis of the abdominal rectus muscles (width 8-10 cm). The most common complication was a hematoma in the lateral part of the wound which occurred in 7 patients (16%). We did not detect any hernia recurrence in the original abdominal wall defects. CONCLUSION: The method of components separation allows us to stitch the edges of the full-thickness abdominal wall to each other, even in cases of large hernias. The introduction of this technique into practice has reduced the risk of recurrence of large hernias without a significant increase in postoperative complications.

Treatment of umbilical hernia and recti muscles diastasis without a periumbilical incision.

PURPOSE: Postpartum rectus diastasis eventually combined with umbilical hernia is a condition that is frequently treated by plastic surgeons and general surgeons. Standard treatment of this condition is abdominoplasty with a periumbilical incision, which often results in an umbilical incision or an inverted-T scar. Limited incision abdominoplasty differs from traditional abdominoplasty by disconnecting the umbilical stalk from the abdominal wall during flap dissection, thus allowing the resection of excess skin above and under the umbilicus without causing periumbilical scarring. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of women undergoing a limited scar abdominoplasty without a periumbilical incision for the treatment of a separation of the recti muscles and/or an umbilical hernia. We recorded the postoperative complications and patient satisfaction with the results of the treatment. RESULTS: We operated on 50 patients from 2002 to 2010. We followed the patients for 2-8 years. The most common complication, as with other abdominoplasty procedures, was minor dehiscention in the middle part of the wound, which occurred in 16 % (n = 8) of the patients. All of these complications were treated conservatively. No recurrence of diastasis or umbilical hernia was observed. CONCLUSIONS: Extended miniabdominoplasty with a low suprapubic incision and umbilical caudalization for treating the diastasis of the abdominal rectus muscles and/or an umbilical hernia is an excellent method that results in a small, hidden scar. This method is especially beneficial for young, slim women with an abdominal wall deformity after pregnancy.

Penis augmentation by application of silicone material: complications and surgical treatment.

BACKGROUND: Complications resulting from enlargement of the penis by applications of unknown types of silicone and mineral oils are well described. Surgical removal of the tissue altered by inflammation leads to the development of defects of various sizes, often circular from the glans penis to the scrotum. The options of subsequent surgical treatment described in literature are not very extensive. Most defects are managed with skin grafting, rarely V-Y advancement or bilateral scrotal flaps. METHODS: We present a 36-year-old patient after application of unknown silicone material into the penis for cosmetic enlargement. After the application developed severe inflammation with ulceration and necrosis around the penis. Conservative treatment was not effective, therefore, the infiltrated skin with subcutaneous tissue of the entire penis was surgically removed. The resulting defect was covered by implantation of the penis under the skin of the scrotum. RESULT: There were no complications in the postoperative course, pain that was present before the surgery immediately subsided. Skin suture healed completely within 14 days. Three months after the surgery the patient returned to normal sexual life. CONCLUSIONS: Implantation of the penis under the skin of the scrotum is a fast, safe and effective method that can treat most of the circular skin defects of the penis. Scrotal skin is thin, soft, elastic and creates abundant and good cover around the entire penis.

[Breast reconstruction by autologous fat transfer]. / Rekonstrukce prsu prenosem autologního tuku.

INTRODUCTION: Autologous fat tissue transfer has recently become extremely popular in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery. Fat represents a filling material with ideal properties - it naturally incorporates into tissues and it is autologous, and therefore 100% biocompatible. An increasing number of publications describe the regenerative properties of autologous fat tissue, especially when used in soft tissue with post-radiation damage. The aim of this article is to describe our experience with fat grafting in breasts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An autologous fat grafting operation consists in 3 phases - harvesting of fat tissue, its processing, and application of the graft. Fat harvesting is similar to classic liposuction. Common methods of fat tissue processing are centrifugation and the use of the PureGraft filter bags. The most important precondition for a favourable result of the operation is the correct graft application. RESULTS: In the period between March 2011 and January 2012, we used this fagrafting to perform surgical breast reconstruction in 15 patients; 8 patients with a breast deformity after partial mastectomy and radiation, 2 patients after complete mastectomy, 2 patients after complete mastectomy reconstructed with the additional use of external expansion, 2 patients after implant reconstruction presenting with subsequent deformity and 1 patient with pectus excavatum. The patients were followed up for 3-12 months. Long-term retention of the graft was considered good. CONCLUSION: By use of fatgrafting, we can achieve excellent results with minimal risk of complications in reconstructive breast surgery. Autologous fat has plenty of advantages when compared to other biomaterials. It is absolutely biocompatible and able to regenerate the surrounding tissue.

Our eight-year experience with breast reconstruction using abdominal advancement flap (207 reconstructions).

There are many possibilities for breast reconstruction after mastectomy. The use of abdominal advancement flap in combination with silicone implant is among the less commonly used methods, although it is simple, fast and leads to excellent results. We started to use this technique at our department eight years ago. Since then we have performed 207 breast reconstructions using abdominal advancement flap in combination with silicone implants. We performed follow-up checks on the patients for between one and six years.

Synmastia--an unusual complication of augmentation mammaplasty.

Synmastia is a complication of breast augmentation which is not well known. It is a condition where the implants touch each other above the breast bone. In the article the authors describe not only the mechanism of its origination but also the opportunities for correction and the prospects of prevention. They illustrate formation of synmastia in a young woman with emphasis on probable causes and methods of its effective correction in their own case study.