Latissimus dorsi free muscle flap in lower-extremity reconstruction

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May JW Jr. Lukash FN. Gallico GG 3d. Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. [JC:p9s] 68(4):603-7, 1981 Oct. The free latissimus dorsi skin-muscle flap has gained wide popularity to solve a variety of difficult reconstructive surgical problems. However, the donor site of this skin-muscle flap leaves a conspicuous scar and indentation, and frequently in the recipient site the skin-muscle flap leaves a conspicuous scar and indentation, and frequently in the recipient site the skin-muscle flap requires staged defatting procedures. This case demonstrates the use of the latissimus dorsi muscle flap for lower -extremity reconstruction, where a new blood supply and soft-tissue coverage are required to solve a chronically infected, open ankle joint. By taking the latissimus muscle only through a short, axillary incision, much of the donor-site deformity is minimized, and after transfer, the muscle can be molded and shaped to fit the recipient site with split -thickness skin graft coverage. This combination of free muscle flap transfer and skin graft would appear to provide a flexible, contoured, well-vascularized muscle with a relatively inconspicuous incision and skin -graft donor site.