Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Soft-tissue repair with muscle flap for open tibia fracture in dog
By Puerto, David A & Aronson, Lillian R·Published in Veterinary surgery : VS·2004·Department of Clinical Studies, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Use of a semitendinosus myocutaneous flap for soft-tissue reconstruction of a grade IIIB open tibial fracture in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 5-year-old male Labrador retriever suffered a severe open fracture in his leg, which left a significant soft-tissue defect over the bone. To repair this, veterinarians used a special technique involving a flap of muscle and skin from the dog's leg, which helped cover the exposed area. While the muscle part of the flap healed well, a small section of the skin did not survive. Overall, this method proved to be an effective way to treat serious injuries like this one, offering a good alternative to other surgical options.
People also search for: dog leg fracture treatment · Labrador soft tissue injury repair · myocutaneous flap surgery for dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical use of a semitendinosus myocutaneous flap for soft-tissue reconstruction of a grade IIIB open tibial fracture. STUDY DESIGN: Case report. ANIMALS: A 5-year-old castrated male Labrador retriever with a grade IIIB open tibial fracture. METHODS: A myocutaneous flap was created by elevating the origin of the semitendinosus muscle and the associated overlying skin. The flap was rotated distally based on the distal vascular pedicle into a soft-tissue defect overlying the central and distal third of the tibia. RESULTS: The flap allowed one-stage reconstruction of a severe soft-tissue defect overlying denuded bone in a grade IIIB open tibial fracture. The muscular portion of the flap survived; however, there was necrosis of 3 cm of skin extending distally beyond the muscular portion of the flap. CONCLUSION: Distal rotation of the semitendinosus muscle and overlying skin can be used in the treatment of severe soft-tissue defects of the canine crus. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Complex soft-tissue injuries to the canine crus can be treated with a myocutaneous flap as a reasonable alternative to other reconstructive techniques.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15659019/