Journal of Plastic, Breast & Reconstructive Surgery·Peer-reviewed, open-access surgical case reportsPeer-reviewed · Open access
Iman Ghanad, Amir K. Bigdeli. Case 9 (2024): Unconventional Reconstruction of a Complex Genital Defect. Journal of Plastic, Breast & Reconstructive Surgery. 2024.
Open access. © 2024 The Author(s). Published by the Journal of Plastic, Breast & Reconstructive Surgery. Copyright to this case is shared between the author(s) and the journal; authors may reuse their own case for education, presentations and social media.
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Iman Ghanad1, Amir K. Bigdeli1
A 56-year-old male patient presented to the urological emergency department with progressively increasing swelling and redness in the genital area. Following the diagnosis of Fournier gangrene, the patient underwent multiple radical necrosectomies, bilateral hemiscrotectomies, and surgical displacement of the testicles into femoral scrotal compartments. Septic symptoms and acute kidney failure nec
BeforeAfterA 56-year-old male patient presented to the urological emergency department with progressively increasing swelling and redness in the genital area. Following the diagnosis of Fournier gangrene, the patient underwent multiple radical necrosectomies, bilateral hemiscrotectomies, and surgical displacement of the testicles into femoral scrotal compartments. Septic symptoms and acute kidney failure necessitated intensive care monitoring for the first sixteen days postoperatively. Subsequently, a significant soft tissue defect (17 x 24 cm) in the inguinal and genital region emerged, prompting referral to our hospital for specialized defect reconstruction. The patient's medical history revealed several underlying conditions including coronary artery disease, arterial hypertension, and type II diabetes mellitus with polyneuropathy. Initially, wound bed preparation was performed in our clinic for further reconstructive planning. It was noticed that the wound was suitable for split-thickness skin grafting. However, due to the patient's non-compliance and the necessity for postoperative bed rest, which the patient did not adhere to, the attempts at split-thickness skin grafting were futile on two occasions. Consequently, the patient decided to discharge himself voluntarily against explicit medical advice. Due to postoperative bleeding and persistent wound healing issues, the patient returned to our clinic for further surgical treatment.
Upon admission to our hospital, the 56-year-old male exhibited obesity. A 17 x 24 cm soft tissue defect could be identified in the inguinal and genital area with bilateral exposed testicles. The testicles were previously relocated into subcutaneous pouches in the thighs. No signs of infection could be detected.
Reconstructive surgery encounters a significant challenge when addressing complex soft tissue loss in the genital and inguinal regions. The inguinal area represents a crucial convergence point of essential anatomical structures. Several individual factors need consideration in developing the treatment plan, including the extent of the defect, potential exposure of anatomical structures, functional requirements, and the patient’s medical history. Given the patient’s prior non-compliance with strict bed rest, opting for free flap surgery carries a heightened risk of failure. Furthermore, previous attempts at split-thickness skin grafting were unsuccessful. Considering the size and position of the soft tissue defect, along with the patient’s specific circumstances of prior unsuccessful coverage attempts, we chose to perform defect reconstruction using a sliding triangular-shaped Deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap. Alternatively, there was the option of reconstruction using bilateral Anterolateral thigh (ALT) flaps. Preoperative CT angiography and color-coded duplex sonography demonstrated robust medial abdominal perforators. Following preoperative surgical treatment plan was worked out for a one stage surgical attempt:
The wound bed was prepared by debriding non-viable tissue and taking precise measurements of the defect. Split-thickness skin grafting was initially deemed suitable for the wound bed, and accordingly, the procedure was performed using skin harvested from the right thigh. However, due to the patient’s non-compliance with postoperative bed rest, which was crucial for successful healing, the skin grafting failed on two separate occasions.
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The initial intraoperative plan was to raise a triangular-shaped bipedicled DIEP flap, intending to rotate it 90° clockwise to reconstruct the entire defect, encompassing both the testicles and scrotum
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Reconstruction began with a thorough debridement of the wound edges. During this process, previously epithelialized skin areas resulting from the conducted split-thickness skin grafts were thourughly removed, even from the testicles.
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Following a meticulous analysis of the flap dimensions and the extent of the defect, we revised our initial reconstruction plan. Considering the dimensions of the defect, we chose to perform proximal defect reconstruction using a sliding bipedicled DIEP (Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator) flap for the proximal portion of the defect. Additionally, we decided to reconstruct the distal portions of the defect using rotational flap surgery from the inner thighs.
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At the beginning, the borders of the rotational flap were delineated and marked on both sides of the thigh using a sterile marker. Following the preparation and elevation of the rotational flap, rotation was executed along with additional release in the form of bilateral Burow’s triangles. Through this method, the rotational flap successfully achieved tension-free coverage of the distal skin and soft tissue defect up to the base of the penis. The flaps were attached to the remaining scrotum with 3-0 absorbable sutures.
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The borders of the DIEP flap were delineated and demarcated according to the needed size, using a sterile marker. For the reconstruction of the remaining defect, a DIEP flap reconstruction was performed, incorporating the robust medial perforators previously identified in the CT-Angiography. Initially, the right-sided DIEP flap was elevated from lateral to medial in an epifascial manner. Subsequently, the left-sided flap was then elevated
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The procedure involved precise dissection of the large-caliber epigastric perforators of the medial row and tracking them through the muscle. The perforators were dissected until tensionless sliding of the flap was possible. In this process, the muscle remained almost entirely intact. Subsequently, the flap was perfused adequately only through the perforators after sufficient dissection.
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Following the adequate preparation of the perforators, the flap was shifted distally.
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Now, the tension-free caudal shift of the flap was performed. Furthermore, the umbilicus was repositioned more caudally. Limited mobilization of the abdominal wall was conducted to ensure a tension-free closure.
10Securing the DIEP flap and donor-site closure:Donor-site closure was achieved through a modified abdominoplasty. Securing of the flap was performed with self-resorbing subcutaneous and intracutaneous sutures. The abdominal fascia was closed with non-resorbale Prolene 2-0 sutures without constriction of the perforators on both sides.
The patient should remain sedentary in bed for five days with hourly monitoring of the perfusion of the flaps by the surgeon for 48 hours. The patient will require outpatient monitoring and follow-up appointments scheduled at two weeks, six weeks, three months, and 12 months post-surgery.
