Reverse first dorsal metacarpal artery flap repair of a right thumb epidermis granuloma: A case study

Abstract

One case of epidermal granuloma of the right thumb was diagnosed by color Doppler ultrasonography and pathologic examination. Epidermal granuloma resection and reverse island skin flap transplantation were performed to determine the therapeutic effect of a reverse first dorsal metacarpal artery flap repair of an epidermal granuloma of the right thumb. After effective intravenous combined general anesthesia, the skin in the surgical field was disinfected and sterile drapes were placed. An oblique incision was made over the underlying epidermis granuloma. The right palm of the reverse first dorsal metacarpal artery flap was chosen. The pedicle was carefully protected, and the flap was transplanted to the defective skin area. The incision was sutured after hemostasis. A palpable mass with the dimension of the right thumb of the patient was measured by color Doppler ultrasonography and physical examination pre-operatively. The palpable mass was oval in shape and protruded from the skin surface. The palpable mass had an unclear boundary with the surrounding skin and therefore the skin should be removed. If the tendon is exposed after the resection, complications may occur after operation, such as skin necrosis and tendon exposure. Intra-operatively, the mass was 1.5×1.0 cm in size and multi-cystic. The boundary between the palpable mass and the surrounding skin could not be discerned. The skin area (1.5×1.0 cm in size) was completely invaded by the palpable mass, which was closely adhered to the surrounding tissue. The palpable mass was carefully dissected with appropriate protection to the finger nerves and arteries. The palpable mass and affected skin were completely removed, leaving a defect area of ~1.5 ×1.0 cm without skin. The reverse first dorsal metacarpal artery flap was used to repair the defect area. The repaired flap had a good blood supply and peripheral circulation. The operation was successful, and the anesthesia effect was satisfactory. Treatment of a thumb epidermis granuloma with reverse first dorsal metacarpal artery flap was shown to be a feasible strategy with a broad clinical application.

Reconstruction of a soft tissue defect of the thumb using a modified dorsal metacarpal artery flap: A case report study

“…On the other hand, local flaps offer advanced esthetic result as the defect is replaced by "similar" tissue. Especially the DMA flaps outmatch as they offer extra amount of soft tissue availability [3,6,9,[17][18].…”

Utility of First Dorsal Metacarpal Artery Flap for Thumb Defects

“…Various authors have documented the utility of reverse FDMA flap for distal phalangeal defects of thumb. 3 10…”

“…Various authors have documented the utility of reverse FDMA flap for distal phalangeal defects of thumb. 3,10 Moberg advancement flap is a known option for distal thumb defects but the advancement gained is only 1 to 1.5 cm. Moreover, it may lead to interphalangeal joint contracture in case of large defects.…”

First dorsal metacarpal artery perforator-based propeller flap: functional anatomy and clinical application in soft-tissue defects of the dorsal hand and digits

“…In the 2010s, some reports described the distally-based FDMA flap [1,8,10]. The flap donor site of these methods is the dorsal hand, which can be simply closed in some situations.…”

“…Omokawa and colleagues [15] performed a cadaveric study and described the anatomical basis of the 2nd-4th DMA perforator flap. The FDMA flap can be raised as a distally based rotational flap [1,8,10]; however, the perforator-based style of the FDMA flap is not an established method [3]. The anatomical basis of the cutaneous blood supply from the FDMA is still unclear.…”