Breast reconstruction is the surgical process of rebuilding the shape and look of a breast, most commonly in women who have had surgery to treat breast cancer. It involves using autologous tissue, prosthetic implants, or a combination of both with the goal of reconstructing a natural-looking breast. This process often also includes the rebuilding of the nipple and areola, known as nipple-areola complex (NAC) reconstruction, as one of the final stages.
Veins are blood vessels in the circulatory system of humans and most other animals that carry blood towards the heart. Most veins carry deoxygenated blood from the tissues back to the heart; exceptions are those of the pulmonary and fetal circulations which carry oxygenated blood to the heart. In the systemic circulation, arteries carry oxygenated blood away from the heart, and veins return deoxygenated blood to the heart, in the deep veins.
Rhinoplasty, commonly called nose job, medically called nasal reconstruction, is a plastic surgery procedure for altering and reconstructing the nose. There are two types of plastic surgery used – reconstructive surgery that restores the form and functions of the nose and cosmetic surgery that changes the appearance of the nose. Reconstructive surgery seeks to resolve nasal injuries caused by various traumas including blunt, and penetrating trauma and trauma caused by blast injury. Reconstructive surgery can also treat birth defects, breathing problems, and failed primary rhinoplasties. Rhinoplasty may remove a bump, narrow nostril width, change the angle between the nose and the mouth, or address injuries, birth defects, or other problems that affect breathing, such as a deviated nasal septum or a sinus condition. Surgery only on the septum is called a septoplasty.
Grafting refers to a surgical procedure to move tissue from one site to another on the body, or from another creature, without bringing its own blood supply with it. Instead, a new blood supply grows in after it is placed. A similar technique where tissue is transferred with the blood supply intact is called a flap. In some instances, a graft can be an artificially manufactured device. Examples of this are a tube to carry blood flow across a defect or from an artery to a vein for use in hemodialysis.
Microsurgery is a general term for surgery requiring an operating microscope. The most obvious developments have been procedures developed to allow anastomosis of successively smaller blood vessels and nerves which have allowed transfer of tissue from one part of the body to another and re-attachment of severed parts. Microsurgical techniques are utilized by several specialties today, such as general surgery, ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, gynecological surgery, otolaryngology, neurosurgery, oral and maxillofacial surgery, endodontic microsurgery, plastic surgery, podiatric surgery and pediatric surgery.
The gracilis muscle is the most superficial muscle on the medial side of the thigh. It is thin and flattened, broad above, narrow and tapering below.
An embolus, is described as a free-floating mass, located inside blood vessels that can travel from one site in the blood stream to another. An embolus can be made up of solid, liquid, or gas. Once these masses get "stuck" in a different blood vessel, it is then known as an "embolism." An embolism can cause ischemia—damage to an organ from lack of oxygen. A paradoxical embolism is a specific type of embolism in which the embolus travels from the right side of the heart to the left side of the heart and lodges itself in a blood vessel known as an artery. Thus, it is termed "paradoxical" because the embolus lands in an artery, rather than a vein.
Mastopexy is the plastic surgery mammoplasty procedure for raising sagging breasts upon the chest of the woman, by changing and modifying the size, contour, and elevation of the breasts. In a breast-lift surgery to re-establish an aesthetically proportionate bust for the woman, the critical corrective consideration is the tissue viability of the nipple-areola complex (NAC), to ensure the functional sensitivity of the breasts for lactation and breast-feeding.
Vascular disease is a class of diseases of the vessels of the circulatory system in the body, including blood vessels – the arteries and veins, and the lymphatic vessels. Vascular disease is a subgroup of cardiovascular disease. Disorders in this vast network of blood and lymph vessels can cause a range of health problems that can sometimes become severe, and fatal. Coronary heart disease for example, is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States.
Replantation or reattachment is defined as the surgical reattachment of a body part that has been completely cut from the body. Examples include reattachment of a partially or fully amputated finger, or reattachment of a kidney that had had an avulsion-type injury.
Lip reconstruction may be required after trauma or surgical excision. The lips are considered the beginning of the oral cavity and are the most common site of oral cancer. Any reconstruction of the lips must include both functional and cosmetic considerations. The lips are necessary for speech, facial expression, and eating. Because of their prominent location on the face, even small abnormalities can be apparent.
A vascular anomaly is any of a range of lesions from a simple birthmark to a large tumor that may be disfiguring. They are caused by a disorder of the vascular system. A vascular anomaly is a localized defect in blood or lymph vessels. These defects are characterized by an increased number of vessels, and vessels that are both enlarged and sinuous. Some vascular anomalies are congenital, others appear within weeks to years after birth, and others are acquired by trauma or during pregnancy. Inherited vascular anomalies are also described and often present with a number of lesions that increase with age. Vascular anomalies can also be a part of a syndrome.
Nasal reconstruction using a paramedian forehead flap within oral and maxillofacial surgery, is a surgical technique to reconstruct different kinds of nasal defects. In this operation a reconstructive surgeon uses skin from the forehead above the eyebrow and pivots it vertically to replace missing nasal tissue. Throughout history the technique has been modified and adjusted by many different surgeons and it has evolved to become a popular way of repairing nasal defects.
The tint of forehead skin so exactly matches that of the face and nose that it must be first choice. Is not the forehead the crowning feature of the face and important in expression? Why then should we jeopardize its beauty to make a nose? First, because in many instances, the forehead makes far and away the best nose. Second, with some plastic juggling, the forehead defect can be camouflaged effectively.
Flap surgery is a technique in plastic and reconstructive surgery where tissue with an intact blood supply is lifted from a donor site and moved to a recipient site. Flaps are distinct from grafts, which do not have an intact blood supply and relies on the growth of new blood vessels. Flaps are done to fill a defect such as a wound resulting from injury or surgery when the remaining tissue is unable to support a graft, or to rebuild more complex anatomic structures like breasts or jaws.
Scalp reconstruction is a surgical procedure for people with scalp defects. Scalp defects may be partial or full thickness and can be congenital or acquired. Because not all layers of the scalp are elastic and the scalp has a convex shape, the use of primary closure is limited. Sometimes the easiest way of closing the wound may not be the ideal or best way. The choice for a reconstruction depends on multiple factors, such as the defect itself, the patient characteristics and surgeon preference.
The cheek constitutes the facial periphery and plays a key role in the maintenance of oral competence and mastication. It is also involved in the facial manifestation of human emotion and supports neighboring primary structures.
Perforator flap surgery is a technique used in reconstructive surgery where skin and/or subcutaneous fat are removed from a distant or adjacent part of the body to reconstruct the excised part. The vessels that supply blood to the flap are isolated perforator(s) derived from a deep vascular system through the underlying muscle or intermuscular septa. Some perforators can have a mixed septal and intramuscular course before reaching the skin. The name of the particular flap is retrieved from its perforator and not from the underlying muscle. If there is a potential to harvest multiple perforator flaps from one vessel, the name of each flap is based on its anatomical region or muscle. For example, a perforator that only traverses through the septum to supply the underlying skin is called a septal perforator. Whereas a flap that is vascularised by a perforator traversing only through muscle to supply the underlying skin is called a muscle perforator. According to the distinct origin of their vascular supply, perforators can be classified into direct and indirect perforators. Direct perforators only pierce the deep fascia, they don't traverse any other structural tissue. Indirect perforators first run through other structures before piercing the deep fascia.
Free-flap breast reconstruction is a type of autologous-tissue breast reconstruction applied after mastectomy for breast cancer, without the emplacement of a breast implant prosthesis. As a type of plastic surgery, the free-flap procedure for breast reconstruction employs tissues, harvested from another part of the woman's body, to create a vascularised flap, which is equipped with its own blood vessels. Breast-reconstruction mammoplasty can sometimes be realised with the application of a pedicled flap of tissue that has been harvested from the latissimus dorsi muscle, which is the broadest muscle of the back, to which the pedicle (“foot”) of the tissue flap remains attached until it successfully grafts to the recipient site, the mastectomy wound. Moreover, if the volume of breast-tissue excised was of relatively small mass, breast augmentation procedures, such as autologous-fat grafting, also can be applied to reconstruct the breast lost to mastectomy.
Doppler ultrasonography is medical ultrasonography that employs the Doppler effect to perform imaging of the movement of tissues and body fluids, and their relative velocity to the probe. By calculating the frequency shift of a particular sample volume, for example, flow in an artery or a jet of blood flow over a heart valve, its speed and direction can be determined and visualized.
Frank Hölzle is a German surgeon. He is a professor of oral and maxillofacial surgery at the RWTH Aachen University. He is chairman and head of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Hölzle is known for his work in the fields of plastic facial reconstruction with a focus on micro surgery. He is also specialised for the treatment of tumor diseases in the head and neck region, and of malformations like cleft lip and palate.
