A conservative approach for deep dermal burn wounds using polarised-light therapy.

This article reports a clinical study investigating the role of polarised-light therapy in the conservative treatment of deep dermal burn wounds. In 22 out of 67 patients with deep dermal burn wounds, clinical evaluation revealed only a very limited potential for spontaneous healing, and, despite the fact that the majority of the surgeons (four out of six) would have recommended surgery, these patients were treated conservatively with polarised-light therapy (400-2000 nm, 40 m W cm(-2), 2.4 J cm(-2)) until complete closure. Evaluation by a panel of four surgeons, all experts in burn surgery, revealed that conservative treatment of these deep dermal wounds with polarised-light irradiation resulted in a significantly shorter healing time, with almost no hypertrophic scarring, and optimal aesthetic and functional results at long-term follow-up. No extension of the hospital stay was required. Polarised-light therapy may be a valuable way of avoiding surgery in patients with deep dermal burns.

Retrospective outcome analysis of staged flexor tendon reconstruction.

Forty staged flexor tendon reconstructions were done in 38 patients between 1991 and 1997. Results were assessed by clinical examination and questionnaire. At follow-up (mean, 35 months) a tenolysis had already been done in 12 cases. In the long fingers there was a significant difference between total active motion (187 degrees ) and total passive motion (237 degrees ). There was also a significant difference between active (24 degrees ) and passive (58 degrees ) IP motion in the thumbs. The mean power grip was 82%, pinch grip 74% and key grip 63% of the contralateral hand. None of the ten FPL reconstructions could be graded as excellent; four were good, using the criteria of Buck-Gramcko et al. (1976). Twenty-eight of the FDP reconstructions had excellent or good results. These results were better than the subjective scores given by the patients, 24 of whom complained of functional problems in daily life at follow-up.

Venous congestion and blood flow in free transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous and deep inferior epigastric perforator flaps.

A series of 240 deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flaps and 271 free transverse rectus abdominis myocutaneous (TRAM) flaps from two institutions was reviewed to determine the incidence of diffuse venous insufficiency that threatened flap survival and required a microvascular anastomosis to drain the superficial inferior epigastric vein. This problem occurred in five DIEP flaps and did not occur in any of the free TRAM flaps. In each of these cases, the presence of a superficial inferior epigastric vein that was larger than usual was noted. It is therefore suggested that if an unusually large superficial inferior epigastric vein is noted when a DIEP flap is elevated, the vein should be preserved for possible use in flap salvage. Anatomical studies with Microfil injections of the superficial venous system of the DIEP or TRAM flap were also performed in 15 cadaver and 3 abdominoplasty specimens to help determine why venous circulation (and flap survival) in zone IV of the flaps is so variable. Large lateral branches crossing the midline were found in only 18 percent of cases, whereas 45 percent had indirect connections through a deeper network of smaller veins and 36 percent had no demonstrable crossing branches at all. This absence of crossing branches in many patients may explain why survival of the zone IV portion of such flaps is so variable and unpredictable.

Reversed palmaris longus muscle causing effort-related median nerve compression.

Two cases of effort-related distal median nerve compression in the dominant forearm caused by a reversed palmaris longus muscle are presented. Simple resection of the muscle belly was performed. Carpal tunnel release was done in one case, but in retrospect this was probably not necessary.

Microsurgery for intra-abdominal testicular retention.

OBJECTIVES: In cases of high intra-abdominal retention of the testis a standard technique of cryptorchidy treatment will not be able to bring down the testis into the scrotum. In this study we wanted to evaluate the feasibility and reliability of the technical aspects of testicular autotransplantations in children under the age of 5 years. STUDY DESIGN: A series of 25 microsurgical autotranslantations of testes performed on 17 boys since July 1984 are reviewed. Emphasis was placed on the microvascular transplantation technique, the age of the patient and the long term viability of the autotransplants. An end-to-end microvascular anastomosis between the deep inferior epigastric artery and the testicular artery was performed in an end-to-end way using mattress stitches to accommodate the difference in diameter between the donor and recipient vessels. Also the testicular veins were anastomosed to the deep inferior epigastric veins. RESULTS: Of the 25 transplantations (96%) were successful after a mean follow up of 24 months, the one failure was ascribed arterial thrombosis. CONCLUSION: Our results show a 96% survival of the transplanted testes using the end-to-end vascular anastomosis as described here.

Traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta: the diagnostic challenge.

The traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta is a severe and lifethreatening entity. It is therefore important to diagnose this lesion. Classically, this is based on the detection of a widened superior mediastinum on chest X-ray. However, several factors like supine position, obesity, mediastinal haematoma,... might bias the diagnosis. The authors present four different clinical presentations of traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta and describe how the lesion was detected. Subsequently, they review the literature on the diagnostic approach of this severe lesion.