Global Prevalence and Preferences of Progressive Tension Suture Usage in Abdominoplasties.

BACKGROUND: Abdominoplasty is one of the most popular esthetic procedures. Seroma is the most frequent postoperative complication. Two decades of literature have described benefits of quilting sutures/progressive tension sutures (PTS) in reducing seroma rates and other complications in abdominoplasties. Despite this, PTS have not been universally adopted by plastic surgeons (ISAPS international survey on aesthetic/cosmetic procedures performed in 2020, 2021) Furthermore, PTS techniques and preferences vary widely. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of PTS use, reasons for reluctance to utilize them, and variety of techniques utilized by plastic surgeons performing abdominoplasties internationally. METHODS: A 13-question survey was emailed via ISAPS to 3842 plastic surgeons internationally. Responses were collected and analyzed. RESULTS: Of the 272 respondents, the majority, 58%, currently use PTS. 46% were introduced to PTS during training. Only PTS training exposure was found to significantly correlate with current usage. Only 22% of North American trainees were exposed to PTS compared to 40-62% of trainees from other geographies. Of respondents who utilize PTS, most, 74%, combine them with drains. The majority use interrupted sutures, 65%, while 19% utilize a running suture, and the remaining 16% combine interrupted and running sutures. Of respondents who do not currently utilize PTS, the most common reason stated is that the surgeon's technique works well without them, 73%, which was significantly correlated with years in practice. CONCLUSION: Globally, most plastic surgeons currently utilize PTS (typically with drains) with training exposure being a significant predictor. There are still areas to address reluctance to implement them and use them without drains. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

How to Approach Secondary Breast Reduction: International Trends and a Systematic Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: Secondary breast reduction is complex and poses significant challenges to surgeons. Complication rates exceed those of primary reduction, commonly caused by impaired vascular supply of the nipple-areolar complex (NAC). Literature on the topic is scare and provides contradicting recommendations, especially with regard to pedicle choice in cases with unknown primary reduction technique. Aim of this study was to investigate international trends and to compare findings with literature. METHODS: A large-scale web-based questionnaire on international trends in mammaplasty (mastopexy and breast reduction) was designed and distributed to over five thousand surgeons in eight geographic regions. The presented manuscript evaluated information regarding pedicle choice in secondary breast reduction and compared data to literature identified in a systematic review. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 1431 participants. Overall, secondary procedures were performed in less than 5% or in 5 to 10% of cases. The preferred pedicle for secondary reductions differed significantly between geographic regions (p<0.001). The majority of respondents reported to use a superior or supero-medial pedicle (34.8% and 32.2%, respectively). Residual analysis revealed a strong association between the use of an inferior pedicle and procedures performed in North America. CONCLUSIONS: Secondary breast reduction is challenging and there remains international disparity with regard to pedicle choice for secondary procedures. Studies investigating outcome when the primary pedicle is unknown are scarce and provide incoherent recommendations. High-quality data is needed to provide evidence-based practice guidelines. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.

Venous Thromboembolism (VTE) Prophylaxis After Abdominoplasty and Liposuction: A Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this review article was to study recent articles and summarise the guidelines, indications, risks and benefits of using VTE prophylaxis in patients undergoing abdominoplasty and liposuction. METHODS: A search of PubMed was performed using selected keywords related to the topic. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 25 articles were included in the review. RESULTS: Abdominoplasty has the highest occurrence of VTE among aesthetic procedures. A higher incidence of VTE was noted when abdominoplasty was combined with liposuction. Circumferential procedures, obesity and HRT (hormone replacement therapy) were found to be independent risk factors for VTE. The 2005 Caprini/Davison risk assessment model is the most appropriate model for risk stratification in plastic surgery patients. Newer oral anticoagulants hold promise. CONCLUSIONS: Preoperative risk stratification should be performed for all patients. Chemoprophylaxis should be considered in cases with a Caprini RAM score > 7 or in those with independent risk factors. Administering regional blocks for anaesthesia and avoiding full muscle paralysis help reduce the risk of VTE. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE III: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266.

[Lipedema - basics and current hypothesis of pathomechanism]. / Lipödem ­ Grundlagen und aktuelle Thesen zum Pathomechanismus.

Lipoedema is a painful, chronic progressive disorder of adipose tissue, characterised by symmetrical swelling of the lower and/or upper limbs. Due to a lack of awareness, lipoedema is frequently misdiagnosed. However, accurate diagnosis and treatment are essential since they determine the patient's prognosis. There is no known causal therapy because the exact aetiology of the disease is not fully understood at this time. Familial aggregation is common, which suggests a genetic disorder. Since lipoedema is almost exclusively found in women and manifests around hormonal changes (puberty, pregnancy, menopause), oestrogen is believed to play a decisive role in its pathogenesis. This review aims to summarise the symptoms and clinical features of lipoedema, its differential diagnosis, treatment options, and current theories on the pathogenesis of lipoedema.

Aesthetic Refinements in Patients with Prominent Eyes.

The treatment of prominent eyes is still a challenging task. As well as the surgery, proper preoperative diagnosis differentiating between patients with and without Graves ophthalmopathy plays an important role. In functionally asymptomatic patients with Graves disease suffering from the aesthetic impairment of prominent eyes, the transpalpebral decompression by intraorbital fat removal technique has been proved to be reliable, effective, safe, and easily performed by a trained and experienced oculoplastic surgeon. This technique provides long-lasting results, leading to improvement not only in visual function but also in personal well-being and in the patient's social life, with a high benefit-to-risk ratio. The most powerful tool to treat the lower lid deformity and malar bags in patients without Graves disease is the subperiosteal midface lift. It shortens the lid-cheek junction and blends the retaining periorbital ligaments. Furthermore, it adds volume to the lower lid and gives a stable support. By the nature of the procedure, it also turns a negative into a positive vector. In experienced hands, Olivari's orbital decompression and Hester's midface lift are ideal options for the treatment of prominent eyes.

Circumferential body contouring: the lower body lift.

A 2-position circumferential approach for body contouring of the lower trunk is presented. Mostly indicated in patients after massive weight loss, this approach allows the simultaneous skin resection and reshaping in the abdominal, flank, lateral thigh, back, and gluteal region in the same operation, with only one position change during surgery. Reconstruction of the abdominal wall and gluteal restoration allow volume and shape enhancement with autologous tissue transpositioning. This article explains the required preconditions, assessment of gluteal deformities, and perioperative management of this procedure, and presents common complications.

Central pedicled breast reduction technique in male patients after massive weight loss.

Male patients after massive weight loss often suffer from redundant skin and soft tissue in the anterior and lateral chest region, causing various deformities of pseudogynecomastia. Techniques with free or pedicled nipple-areola complex (NAC) transposition are widely accepted. The authors present their approach to male breast reduction with preservation of the NAC on a central dermoglandular pedicle and a wide elliptical tissue excision of breast and lateral thorax tissue in combination with liposuction. Male breast reduction was performed on patients after moderate to massive weight loss due to diet or bariatric procedures. Former procedures included free nipple-areola grafts or inferior pedicled techniques for NAC preservation. As a modification, we performed a central pedicled breast reduction on nine male patients with excessive liposuction of the pedicle and a horizontal elliptical skin removal, allowing for sufficient tissue removal at the lateral thorax. From October 2010 until June 2011, nine male patients had central pedicled breast reconstructions after massive weight loss. Mean age was 29.1 years, mean preoperative body mass index was 29.2, and mean preoperative weight loss was 63.9 kg. The chest wall improvement was rated "very good" by eight patients. No major complications occurred in all nine patients. Male chest deformities after massive weight loss can be dealt by several approaches. The optimal scar positioning and the preservation of NAC may be the most challenging aspects of these procedures. Therefore, the preservation of the NAC on a central dermoglandular pedicle with a horizontal submammary scar course may optimize the esthetic outcome.

The scarpa lift--a novel technique for minimal invasive medial thigh lifts.

Abdominoplasty and lower body lift procedures are the most common and sufficient procedures to correct abdominal tissue redundancy. Frequently, patients who undergo these procedures have lost a relevant amount of weight and additionally present tissue redundancy in the area of the medial thighs. Patients with mild to moderate skin surplus in the medial thigh region often refuse an additional scar in this specific region. For these cases, the medial thigh region can be indirectly treated by the vertical scarpa lift, sparing the medial thigh approach and consequent complications such as scar descent or vulvar distortion. Additionally, the lymphatic vessels below the scarpa fascia can be preserved, reducing the postoperative abdominal seroma rate.

Promotion of incisional wound repair by human mesenchymal stem cell transplantation.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of transplanted human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) on wound healing. In this model, full-thickness cutaneous wounds were created by incision in the skin of adult New Zealand white rabbits and treated by transplanted hMSCs into the wounds. Wound healing was evaluated by histological analysis and tensiometry over time. A total of 15 New Zealand white rabbits with 10 wounds per animal were examined in this study. Animals were treated with hMSCs and euthanised at 3, 7, 14, 21 and 80 days after manipulation. The hMSCs were labelled with a fluorescent dye (CM-DiI), suspended in phosphate-buffered saline and used to treat full-thickness incisional wounds in rabbit skin. Tensiometry and histology were used to characterise the wound-healing rate of the incisional wounds. These results showed that transplanted hMSCs significantly inhibited scar formation and increased the tensile strength of the wounds. Importantly, MSCs from genetically unrelated donors did not appear to induce an immunologic response. In conclusion, human mesenchymal stem cell therapy is a viable approach to significantly affect the course of normal cutaneous wound healing and significantly increase the tensile strength.

Dealing with the mass: a new approach to facilitate panniculectomy in patients with very large abdominal aprons.

BACKGROUND: Panniculectomy surgery is performed to remove a massive pannus, or abdominal apron, which frequently contributes to a number of health concerns. The resection of such a massive abdominal panniculus is technically difficult due to the weight of the tissue and the difficulty in handling it during surgery. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review on 20 morbidly obese patients (14 male, six female) who underwent a panniculectomy with a resection weight of >6 kg between November 2003 and November 2007 at our department. RESULTS: The patients' weight ranged from 90 to 240 kg, with a mean weight of 157.6 kg. The redundant pannus weighed from 6.8 to 60.0 kg. Uncomplicated healing occurred in 55% of cases. Further complications were not observed. CONCLUSIONS: The treatment of a massive panniculus requires a multitask management considering optimal conditions for the surgeon and patient. Based on our experience from 20 patients over 4 years, we are able to present our standardized and improved technique using a mechanical lift and a tumescent solution to facilitate this procedure.

Circumferential lower truncal dermatolipectomy.

Obesity and overweight in the general population have increased significantly over the last several years. Such increases have stimulated many approaches to treat this condition from a clinical perspective, with improved surgical and conservative measures that have become available for controlling overweight. The present article examines both established procedures for performing body lift procedures and innovative approaches that are now available, as well as their potential complications. The problems and solutions discussed in this article derive from the authors' own experiences collected over the last 10 years at the Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Dreifaltigkeits-Hospital in Wesseling, Germany. These surgical procedures are the operations with the largest treated body surface area with manageable risks when the planning and operation are performed meticulously and conscientiously.

Transpalpebral decompression of endocrine ophthalmopathy by intraorbital fat removal (Olivari technique): experience and progression after more than 3000 operations over 20 years.

BACKGROUND: Graves' ophthalmopathy is a chronic, multisystem disorder characterized by increased intraorbital fat tissue and hypertrophic extraocular muscles caused by an autoimmune process. Graves' ophthalmopathy represents the most frequent extrathyroidal manifestation of Graves' disease. Clinical findings are impaired ocular motility, diplopia, lid retraction, and impaired visual acuity up to optic neuropathy, with menacing blindness. METHODS: Transpalpebral decompression by intraorbital fat removal was first described by Olivari in 1988. From 1984 to 2004, a consecutive series of 1635 patients (3210 eyes) with Graves' ophthalmopathy underwent this operation at the authors' institution. The medical records of 1374 patients (84 percent) could be evaluated retrospectively. RESULTS: Postoperatively, the majority of patients showed significant improvements of major symptoms such as ocular protrusion, diplopia, decreased visual acuity, swelling of the eyelids, retrobulbar pressure, and headache. In addition, complications-most of them temporary and reversible-were rare. Because the osseous orbita is not touched, no complications, such as penetration of the dura, infection of the sinus maxillaris, meningitis, irritation of the infraorbital nerve, or obstruction of the lacrimal system, were observed. However, the high number of additional eyelid corrections (average, 2.5 individual corrections) following the decompression indicated the complexity of surgical treatment in endocrine orbitopathy. CONCLUSION: Transpalpebral decompression has proved to be reliable, effective, and safe, with good, lasting results leading to an improvement not only in visual function but also in the patient's personal well-being and social life, with a high-benefit-to-low-risk ratio.

Polymethylmethacrylate for managing frontal bone deformities.

The correction of bony frontal deformities has been accomplished with a variety of autogenous and alloplastic materials. Of the various materials currently available, polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), a valuable biomaterial, has proved to be effective in reconstructing deformities of the frontal bone. The authors present one case of acquired frontal bone deformity reconstructed by subperiostal application of PMMA through a minimally invasive coronal approach. Our preliminary experience with this method has been promising.