Lopez-Casero R, De Pedro J A, Rodriguez E, Masquelet A C
Department of Orthopedics, Ramón y Cajal Hospital, Madrid, Spain.
Surg Radiol Anat. 1995;17(2):113-9, 5-7. doi: 10.1007/BF01627570.
The management of severe compound tibial fractures is aimed at obtaining osseous consolidation, proper cutaneous and muscular cover, absence of infection and restoration of limb function. A knowledge of the cutaneous and muscular vascularisation allows the surgeons to use many flaps in a rational and predictable manner. One of the most commonly used flaps is the soleus muscular flap. This may be used as a proximally or distally based muscular flap and the use of a hemisoleus flap has also been described. A morphometric analysis of the relation between tibial length and soleus vascular pattern provides a simple and reliable method for planning this flap preoperatively. The study was performed on fresh and preserved cadavers.
