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Background: The treatment of locally advanced or recurrent anorectal cancer requires radical surgery such as extralevator abdominoperineal resection and pelvic exenteration. Larger defects require flap reconstruction. The authors evaluated outcomes of different perineal reconstruction techniques., Methods: A systematic search was performed in the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane databases. Studies reporting outcomes on perineal flap reconstruction in patients with anal or colorectal cancer were included. Data on patient characteristics, surgical details, perineal and donor-site complications, revision surgery, mortality, and quality of life were extracted. Articles were assessed using the Group Reading Assessment and Diagnostic Evaluation approach., Results: The authors included 58 mainly observational studies comprising 1988 patients. Seventy-three percent of patients had rectal cancer. The majority of 910 abdominoperineal resection patients underwent reconstruction with rectus abdominis flaps (91 percent). Dehiscence (15 to 32 percent) and wound infection (8 to 16 percent) were the most common complications. Partial flap necrosis occurred in 2 to 4 percent and flap loss occurred in 0 to 2 percent. Perineal herniation was seen in 6 percent after gluteal flap reconstruction and in 0 to 1 percent after other types of reconstruction. Donor-site complications were substantial but were reported inconsistently., Conclusions: Clinical outcome data on perineal reconstruction after exenterative surgery are mostly of very low quality. Perineal reconstruction after pelvic exenteration is complex and requires a patient-tailored approach. Primary defect size, reconstruction aims, donor-site availability, and long-term morbidity should be taken into account. This review describes the clinical outcomes of four flap reconstruction techniques. Shared clinical decision-making on perineal reconstruction should be based on these present comprehensive data., (Copyright © 2021 by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of iNPWT for the prevention of postoperative wound complications such as SSI., Summary of Background Data: The 2016 WHO recommendation on the use of iNPWT for the prevention of SSI is based on low-level evidence, and many trials have been published since. Preclinical evidence suggests that iNPWT may also prevent wound dehiscence, skin necrosis, seroma, and hematoma., Methods: PubMed, EMBASE, CINAHL, and CENTRAL were searched for randomized and nonrandomized studies that compared iNPWT with control dressings. The evidence was assessed using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool, the Newcastle-Ottawa scale, and GRADE. Meta-analyses were performed using random-effects models., Results: High level evidence indicated that iNPWT reduced SSI [28 RCTs, n = 4398, relative risk (RR) 0.61, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.49-0.76, P < 0.0001, I = 27%] with a number needed to treat of 19. Low level evidence indicated that iNPWT reduced wound dehiscence (16 RCTs, n = 3058, RR 0.78, 95% CI: 0.64-0.94). Very low-level evidence indicated that iNPWT also reduced skin necrosis (RR 0.49, 95% CI: 0.33-0.74), seroma (RR 0.43, 95% CI: 0.32-0.59), and length of stay (pooled mean difference -2.01, 95% CI: -2.99 to 1.14)., Conclusions: High-level evidence indicates that incisional iNPWT reduces the risk of SSI with limited heterogeneity. Low to very low-level evidence indicates that iNPWT also reduces the risk of wound dehiscence, skin necrosis, and seroma.

Background: Physiologic studies show that tissue perfusion increases during moderate amounts of tissue compression. This is attributed to sensory nerves initiating a vasodilatory cascade referred to as pressure-induced vasodilation., Methods: PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for studies investigating perfusion during pressure exposure longer than 10 minutes. Retrieved studies were assessed using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation Risk of Bias Rating Tool for Human and Animal Studies. Results were pooled with random effects models. The body of evidence was rated using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation approach., Results: Twenty-nine articles were included, of which 19 articles were included in meta-analyses. The evidence indicates that moderate amounts of tissue compression have the capacity to increase perfusion in healthy humans by 46 percent (95 percent CI, 30 to 62 percent). Using the Office of Health Assessment and Translation approach, the authors found a high level of confidence in the body of evidence. Pressure-induced vasodilation blockade was associated with increased pressure ulcer formation. Pressure-induced vasodilation was impaired by neuropathy and by the drugs diclofenac and amiloride., Conclusions: This systematic review and meta-analysis indicates that healthy humans have the capacity to increase local perfusion in response to mechanical stress resulting from tissue compression. Because pressure-induced vasodilation is mediated by sensory nerves, pressure-induced vasodilation emphasizes the importance of sensory innervation for durable tissue integrity. Pressure-induced vasodilation impairment seems to provide a complementary explanation for the susceptibility of neuropathic tissues to pressure-induced lesions.

Background: The sural nerve is a sensory nerve that innervates the proximal part of the lateral aspect of the foot. The sural nerve is often harvested for nerve grafting. Sensory loss in the area supplied by the sural nerve could be expected, causing a lack of protective sensation and a potential risk of injury. The sensory outcome of sural nerve harvesting has not been documented in children. The aim of this study was to evaluate the sensory deficit following sural nerve harvest in infants., Methods: The authors conducted a controlled study. Evaluation and mapping of the sensory thresholds in the sural nerve distribution were performed using the Semmes-Weinstein monofilament method on four predetermined sites on the foot. A questionnaire was used to elicit subjective findings. The inclusion criteria were children older than 6 years who had undergone bilateral sural nerve harvesting for brachial plexus reconstruction in the first year of life. Normal volunteers served as controls., Results: Fourteen patients and 14 controls were enrolled in the study. Eighty-six percent of the feet that were operated on had a sensory deficit (p = 0.0001). The patients reported no concerns regarding the sensation of their feet., Conclusions: Sural nerve harvesting in children leaves a measurable sensory deficit; however, this deficit does not seem to have clinical implications for the patients.

Background: Skin stretching harnesses the same viscoelastic properties of the skin as expansion, with the difference that the forces are applied externally and not internally. An improvised system for wound closure is presented., Method: The system is assembled using silicone vascular loops used as sutures and the flow controllers of intravenous sets as locking devices. The wounds are gradually closed by increasing the tension applied by the devices., Results: The system has been applied to nine traumatic wounds in six patients. The average size of the wounds was 70 cm; the average number of devices used was 4.3 (range, 1-9; median, 3); the average time to achieve closure was 1.55 days (range, 0-2 days; median, 2 days)., Conclusion: This system permits the closure of wounds not suitable for closure by primary intention and avoids the use of skin grafts or flaps.

Background: High-pressure injection injury is an injury caused by accidental injection of substances by industrial equipment. This injury may have devastating sequelae. The goal of this study was to assess the long-term outcome of high-pressure injection injury to the hand., Methods: In this historical prospective study, patients who had previously sustained high-pressure injection injury were examined. Assessment included measurement of grip and pinch strength, range of motion, two-point discrimination, and use of a questionnaire regarding present complaints and return to the work force., Results: Twenty-three patients were examined. Follow-up length was on average 8.5 years. The injured hand was most often (43 percent) the right dominant hand, the index in 65 percent, the thumb in 25 percent, and other locations in 10 percent. Only 43 percent of patients returned to their previous employment. Patient complaints were, in descending frequency, cold intolerance, hypersensitivity, paresthesias, constant pain, and impairment of activities of daily living. Metacarpophalangeal range of motion was decreased on average by 8.1 percent (p = 0.019), proximal interphalangeal joint range of motion was decreased by 23.9 percent (p = 0.001), and distal interphalangeal range of motion was decreased by 29.7 percent (p= 0.018). Maximum grip was decreased compared with the expected grip by 12 percent (p = 0.023). Pinch was decreased by 35 percent (p < 0.001). Two-point discrimination was increased by 49 percent (p < 0.007)., Conclusion: This study confirms the fact that high-pressure injection injury to the hand is a significant problem. Virtually all patients suffer sequelae of this injury. The injury has significant repercussions for future function and reintegration into the work force.

Background: In patients with deep circumferential burns, adequate resolution of burn-induced compartment syndrome (BICS) is achieved by surgical escharotomy. Surgical escharotomy is traumatic, may cause considerable blood loss, does nothing toward debridement of the burn wound, and entails possible morbidity and complications. Debridase is a Bromelain derived enzymatic preparation capable of lysing the burn eschar within 4 hours, obviating the need for surgical debridement. It has an affinity to burned necrotic tissue and does not damage healthy skin. In our clinical assessment of the Debridase efficacy, we found in several cases of deep burns of the limbs that the measured IC pressure subsided after 2-4 hours of Debridase application and none of the enzymatic escharotomy treated patients suffering from circumferential burns developed BICS. To confirm these observations we conducted this controlled study., Aim: to assess the efficacy of Debridase for treating BICS in an animal model., Materials and Methods: A model for BICS was developed by making circumferential burns to pig legs and monitoring the anterior compartment the legs. BICS was induced in the legs of 5 pigs, 20 legs. 10 legs were treated with Debridase and 10 served as nontreated controls, treated by surgical escharotomy at the conclusion of the experiment., Results: Debridase reduced BICS within 30 minutes from application. Debridase was as effective as a standard surgical escharotomy., Conclusion: Escharectomy using an effective enzymatic debriding agent is potentially an adequate, simple, fast and effective procedure to treat BICS, it has the added benefit of burn debridement without surgical escharotomy.