Appraisal of myocutaneous flapping for treatment of postmastectomy lymphedema. Case report.

Two patients with severe postmastectomy lymphedema of the upper extremity were treated with myocutaneous flapping, using latissimus dorsi muscle. Complete disappearance of edema was achieved by 11 months postoperatively in one case and 50% reduction by 8 months in the other case. The satisfactory results commend the procedure, which has yet to gain global acceptance.