The Silent Helper: A Helpful Tool in Autologous Breast Reconstruction Surgery.

The internal mammary vessels are the standard recipient vessels in autologous breast reconstruction. Rib-sparing techniques have evolved to routine use, limiting the surgical field for vessel preparation to a minimum. An inframammary approach for skin-sparing mastectomy provides aesthetically pleasing results but might impede exposure even further. We have developed a simple yet elaborate technique to expose the surgical field for the preparation of the internal mammary vessels in a staff- and cost-efficient manner while using basic surgical tools.