The importance of venous drainage in rat flaps: an experimental study.

Venous drainage of musculocutaneous grafts prepared on the backs of rats survived successfully by preserving the draining vein. Even in musculocutaneous flaps, venous drainage at the distal part of the flap plays an important role in a successful take. An experiment was prepared in a rat model in which the iliolumbar veins were utilized as the draining veins, and musculocutaneous flaps, 4 x 10 cm in size, were created. In this experiment, it was shown that even in random pattern musculocutaneous flaps, necrosis can be prevented by preserving the draining vein.