Granular cell tumors are uncommon, usually benign neoplasms, mainly observed in the head and neck region, chest wall and upper extremities. These tumors account for ~0.5% of all soft-tissue tumors. Less than 2% are malignant. These are associated with poor prognosis. Clinical signs suspicious for malignancy are large size, rapid growth, invasion, recurrence and metastasis. Malignancy is confirmed by histological examination. We present the case of a 79-year-old patient with a 6-month history of a rapidly growing mass in the left gluteal region giving the clinical impression of a malignant tumor. The patient underwent surgical excision of the tumor and the pathology report revealed a granular cell tumor. In difficult cases, multidisciplinary approach is necessary for appropriate diagnosis and management.

Summary:The road to becoming a good and confident microsurgeon requires love for your work, patience, and good training facilities. Safe and effective training procedures for young microsurgeons during their plastic surgery residency are necessary and should be applied under standardized conditions. We present an innovative microsurgical training method for plastic surgery residents in the operation theater concerning the anterolateral thigh perforator flap (ALT). In a 2-team approach, the ALT flap harvesting begins parallel to tumor resection. Although the tumor excision team still works in the tumor region, and after the reconstructive team has successfully completed the ALT dissection, residents can work distally to the origin of the perforator vessel (which supplies the flap). Their training involves dissection and anastomosis of the continuation of the descending branch, distally to the perforator supplying the flap. Since 2015, eight operations have been performed with this innovative method with the participation of upcoming microsurgeons. A written informed consent is given to all patients. Our study resulted in the improvement of microsurgical skills of the young microsurgeons. There is no impact to the ALT perforator flap or to the operative time. This training procedure can be safely applied as a training method during plastic surgery residency under standardized conditions. We have the joy of seeing our resident’s progress through their high success rates in microsurgery. We recommend this innovative procedure as an adequate teaching method during residency to promote the future of our specialty, and we hope that our students will become even better than their teachers.

Summary:Reconstruction of perineal defects is a challenging procedure. Various surgical techniques have been proposed. Compared with traditional myocutaneous flaps, pedicled perforator flaps are believed to be a less invasive option for perineal reconstruction, with better functional and cosmetic results. We present the case of a 47-year-old woman with a perianal Paget’s disease who underwent surgical excision of the lesion. The reconstructive technique was a pedicled flap based on an internal pudendal skin perforator artery. The flap was designed in a diamond-shaped pattern. Six months after the operation, the patient is disease-free with successful aesthetic and functional results. A polygonal diamond-shaped flap is an easy and reliable choice for perineal reconstruction, offering better adjustment in the perianal region and avoidance of the curvilinear perianal incision (which often leads to anal stenosis).

Obesity is a disease rather than a state, and metabolic bariatric surgery (MBS) is its most effective treatment. Body contouring surgery (BCS) is an integral part of the continuum of care following MBS, provided that the body mass index (BMI) has stabilized for an adequate period. This study is an attempt to capture the current status of BCS following MBS in Greece, based on data from one of the country’s highest-volume hospitals. We recruited patients from the Bariatric and Plastic-Reconstructive Surgery registries who had undergone both MBS and BCS and invited them to answer a structured questionnaire with components on demographics, safety and effectiveness of previous operations, quality of life (QoL), body image, social activity, sexual activity, and doctor–patient communication. Twenty-four patients participated in the survey (response rate 88.1%). The mean BMI pre-MBS was 43.8 kg/m2 and that pre-BCS was 28.6 kg/m2. Based on the Bariatric sub-cohort, only 2.5% of post-bariatric patients underwent BCS. The mean interval between MBS and BCS was 2.9 years. The distribution of patients by MBS was as follows: sleeve gastrectomy 8 (33.3%), gastric band 7 (29.2%), gastric bypass 5 (20.8%), and gastric plication 2 (8.3%). The distribution of patients by BCS was as follows: abdominoplasty 23 (94.7%), breast contouring 8 (33.3%), thigh contouring 3 (12.5%), and arm contouring 5 (20.8%). Most positive components (70.6%) regarding QoL were appraised by >80% of the participants, indicating overall satisfaction after BCS. Conversely, only 12.5% of negative components were endorsed by >20% of patients. In conclusion, BCS has a low prevalence after MBS, although it is related to an improved quality of life and body image.

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