The utility of pericranial flaps.

Three cases are presented illustrating various uses of pericranial flaps. In a patient with Apert's syndrome, a large pericranial flap was folded over bone pâté harvested from the upper frontal bone to improve forehead contour. Silicone and acrylic implants had been inserted in 2 other patients, 1 of whom had previously undergone radiation therapy for the correction of cranial defects. Both were lost due to infection. Autogenous bone grafts covered by pericranial flaps healed without difficulty, emphasizing the superiority of autogenous bone grafts over foreign substances in craniofacial reconstruction. Further uses of pericranial flaps are discussed.