The caudal gluteal vessels: a suitable recipient bundle for free bone grafting in the canine femur.

The caudal gluteal vascular bundle was analyzed in the dog to determine its suitability as a recipient area for free vascularized bone grafts in the femur. The anatomy of the caudal gluteal artery and vein, as well as the arterial blood flow, were studied. This bundle was also used to revascularize 50 free vascularized rib grafts for proximal and femoral shaft reconstruction. The pedicle was constant, long (6.12 +/- 1.85 cm), and easily accessible via a lateral approach. It was large enough (artery: 1.74 +/- 0.46 mm, vein: 2.27 +/- 0.69 mm) and had an adequate blood flow (99 +/- 8 ml/mn) for microvascular techniques. Due to the existence of three anastomotic vascular rings with both the superficial and deep femoral bundles, these vessels had a bidirectional blood flow. In all the free vascularized rib grafts the caudal gluteal vessels were distally based (reversed blood flow) and provided a sufficient blood supply to the grafted bone. These results suggest that the caudal gluteal vessels are excellent recipient vessels for research in the field of free vascularized bone grafts using the canine femur.