Prefabricated flaps: experimental and clinical review.

Prefabricated flaps are a useful tool for the reconstructive surgeon and present a number of advantages: 1. Specific preferred tissue composites, regardless of their native vascular origin, can be transferred as free or pedicled flaps. 2. Larger flaps of specialized tissue may be transferred safely. 3. Donor-site morbidity is reduced. 4. The functional outcome for the patients may be more satisfactory. The various methods of flap prefabrication include vascular induction through stage transfer; pretransfer delay, expansion, and grafting; the use of alloplastic materials; and tissue bioengineering. We have reviewed both the experimental and clinical research on flap prefabrication, describing the theory, technique, and advantages of each method.