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Case Reports
. 2022 Mar 7:32:144-149.
doi: 10.1016/j.jpra.2022.02.003. eCollection 2022 Jun.

Profunda femoris artery perforator flap for lateral knee joint reconstruction: A report of two cases

Kaoru Tada  1 , Masashi Matsuta  1 , Atsuro Murai  1 , Yuta Nakamura  1 , Seigo Suganuma  2 , Hiroyuki Tsuchiya  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Profunda femoris artery perforator flap for lateral knee joint reconstruction: A report of two cases

Kaoru Tada et al. JPRAS Open. .

Abstract

The profunda femoris artery perforator flap (PAP) based on a proximal skin perforator is often used for breast reconstruction. We report two cases of lateral knee joint reconstruction using a PAP flap based on a distal skin perforator. Case 1 is a 16-year-old male adolescent who underwent inappropriate resection of a synovial sarcoma on the lateral aspect of the right knee joint, which necessitated additional wide resection that led to a soft tissue defect measuring 11 × 5 cm. We elevated a propeller PAP flap (23 × 7 cm) for defect reconstruction, and the flap survived completely. Case 2 is an 81-year-old woman who underwent wide resection of an undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma on the lateral aspect of the right knee joint showed a persistent soft tissue defect measuring 9 × 6 cm. We elevated a propeller PAP flap (25 × 7 cm) as described in Case 1, and the flap survived completely. Skin perforators of the profunda femoris artery are present both in the proximal and distal thigh; therefore, a PAP flap can also be elevated in the distal thigh. However, a few reports have discussed PAP flap elevation in the distal thigh for knee joint reconstruction. The PAP flap with a distal skin perforator can be elevated with a relatively large volume of skin paddle and may be a useful option for lateral knee joint reconstruction.

Keywords: Knee joint; Profunda femoris artery perforator flap; Propeller flap.

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Conflict of interest statement

None of the authors have any conflict of interest in relation to this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A soft tissue defect measuring 11 × 5 cm on the lateral aspect of the right knee joint.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Axial images of contrast-enhanced computed tomography (left) and magnetic resonance imaging (right). The distal skin perforators branched from the profunda femoris artery and then ran between the vastus lateralis and biceps femoris muscles to the skin.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Just after the elevation of the flap. White arrowhead is the distal skin perforator.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Complete flap survival at the final follow-up.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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