Journal of Plastic Surgery and Hand Surgery

AIM: The purpose of this study was to evaluate clinical, patient rated and radiological outcome of the scaphoid trapezium pyrocarbon implant (STPI) at a minimum of three years follow-up. METHODS: Consecutive patients operated with the STPI due to scaphotrapeziotrapezoidal (STT) arthritis between 2012 and 2019 were included. Patients were evaluated preoperatively and annually after surgery for range of motion, grip strength, key pinch, quick-DASH, pain, and satisfaction...

Facial fat grafting is a popular cosmetic procedure, and experts are increasingly endorsing the use of high-density fat with adipose stem cell glue for better results. This study aims to explore the effect of high-density fat combined with adipose stem cell glue on the success rate of facial filling and its clinical value. We conducted a randomized trial with 100 patients who underwent facial fat transplantation between August 2020 and August 2022. They were divided into two groups: a control group receiving traditional Coleman fat transplantation and an observation group receiving high-density fat with adipose stem cells...

PURPOSE: This review was performed to systematically compare the effectiveness and safety of the first dorsal metacarpal artery flaps (FDMAF) and reverse homodigital dorsal flaps (RHDF) for thumb reconstruction. METHODS: All literatures, which compared FDMAF versus RHDF for thumb reconstruction, were acquired through a comprehensive search in multiple databases from inception until 31st August 2022. A meta-analysis was performed using the Cochrane Collaboration's RevMan 5...

AIM: To investigate surgical treatment, postoperative rehabilitation and prevention of heterotopic ossification (HO) in patients with post-traumatic elbow stiffness. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of patients with post-traumatic elbow stiffness combined with HO between 2007 and 2021. This study was performed on a total of 15 patients (18 elbows) admitted to our hospital, consisting of 12 males and 3 females, with post-traumatic stiffness of the elbow combined with HO, where elbow function could not be recovered by rehabilitation and orthosis treatment...

INTRODUCTION: Median nerve injuries occur in approximately 3% of pediatric elbow fracture dislocations. These rare injuries can be difficult to diagnose, and the results are poor in delay cases. Surgical timing is one of the most important prognostic factors. We aimed to present three patients with median nerve palsy who were referred to our clinic late, and according to these cases, we emphasized the expected time frame for exploration based on our anatomical cadaver study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Between 2008 and 2010, three patients were referred to our clinic because of median nerve paralysis after a treated elbow dislocation...

BACKGROUND: There are several techniques for reconstructing breasts after mastectomy, but little scientific evidence for which technique is superior. The aim of this systematic review was to compare the cost-effectiveness of implant-based and autologous reconstruction and to evaluate the overall certainty of evidence, as well as the quality of reporting of the included studies. METHODS: Studies investigating the cost-effectiveness of breast reconstruction with a deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap compared to implant-based reconstruction, meeting criteria defined in a PICO (population, intervention, comparison, and outcome), were included...

In this report, we describe a super microsurgical technique that enables rapid and accurate anastomosis while adjusting for caliber differences when anastomosing a small-caliber lymphatic vessel and a vein with a larger caliber, which is frequently encountered in surgeries such as lymphaticovenous anastomosis (LVA).  The suture size adjustment technique was performed in 30 anastomoses of lymphatic vessels and veins, whose diameter of lymph duct was at least two times smaller than that of the vein. The type of lymphedema, caliber of lymphatic vessels and veins anastomosed, caliber ratio, vein wall thickness, modified caliber ratio after vein wall thickness subtracted, presence of additional anastomosis, and anastomosis time were examined...

The aim of this study was to report longitudinal speech results in consecutively selected children from each of the six cleft centres in Sweden and to compare the results between centres. The children were born with a non-syndromic unilateral cleft lip and palate, and results from the same cohort at 5 years of age have previously been reported. Background data on medical care in terms of surgery, speech therapy, and hearing between 5 and 10 years of age were collected. Speech recordings of 56 children at 7 years and 54 at 10 years of age were blindly and independently assessed by four speech-language pathologists experienced in cleft palate speech...

BACKGROUND: Many patients suffered from serious pain after breast augmentation, but the analgesic efficacy of pectoral nerve block for these patients was not well established. Thus, this meta-analysis was intended to study the analgesic efficacy of pectoral nerve block for breast augmentation. METHODS: Several databases including PubMed, EMbase, Web of Science, EBSCO, and Cochrane library databases were searched, and we included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) regarding the analgesic efficacy of pectoral nerve block for breast augmentation...

The aim of this systematic review was to determine whether one-stage palatoplasty for children born with cleft lip and palate shows overall advantages in outcome compared with two-stage palatoplasty. The included studies were controlled studies of syndromic and non-syndromic children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate, bilateral cleft lip and palate, or isolated cleft palate. The interventions studied were one-stage palatoplasty and two-stage palatoplasty starting with the soft palate. The outcomes were facial growth, speech, hearing, presence of fistulae, other complications related to surgery, health-related quality of life, and health economics...

BACKGROUND: Normative data for interpreting the BREAST-Q reconstruction module are currently limited to four populations. The primary aim of this study was to create Swedish normative values for the BREAST-Q reconstruction domains. The secondary aim was to describe what aspects of the breasts and potential donor sites that women of the general population are generally satisfied or dissatisfied with. METHODS: The BREAST-Q reconstruction module was sent to a random sample of 400 women currently living in Region Västra Götaland...

BACKGROUND: The management of old bony mallet fingers is complicated. The purpose of this study was to describe direct fixation of fracture fragment with modified double Kirschner wires (K-wires) for treatment of old bony mallet finger, and to evaluate the functional outcomes during long-term follow-up. METHODS: Forty-nine patients with old bony mallet finger were enrolled and underwent surgical treatment from August 2014 to January 2021 in our hospital. Patients were divided into two groups according to whether they had undergone triple K-wires fixation or modified double K-wires with a dorsal brace fixation...

Advancement of the maxilla may increase the distance between the soft palate and the posterior pharyngeal wall in patients with cleft lip and palate, implying a risk of velopharyngeal dysfunction. The aim was to evaluate long-term speech outcome in a consecutive series of patients treated with distraction osteogenesis (DO). Fourteen out of the 16 patients agreed to participate. A long-term speech follow-up was performed 1.5 to 13.5 years after DO. For two participants, audio recordings before DO were missing, and for another one, it was incomplete...

Replantation is widely regarded as the first choice of treatment for finger amputations. However, if the fingertip of a traumatic finger amputation is missing after an injury, the following procedures are often performed to reconstruct this portion: flap surgery, stump surgery, or conservative treatment, including occlusive dressings. To our knowledge, no existing English literature reports using negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) to treat traumatic finger amputations. We postulated that NPWT may be applied as a conservative treatment for traumatic finger amputations, promoting the growth of granulation tissue and achieving early epithelialization of the fingertips...

Breast reconstruction is a given choice for many women following mastectomy. There are a multitude of methods available today, and thus, comparative studies are essential to match patients with suitable methods. The aim of this study was to compare 5-year outcomes following delayed breast reconstruction with expander prosthesis (EP) and with deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flaps. Seventy-three patients, previously randomised to either a permanent EP or a DIEP flap breast reconstruction, were invited for a 5-year follow-up...

BACKGROUND: Knowledge about the prevalence of women with breast implants is paramount in calculations of risks and in estimations of effects on screening and breast cancer treatment. Most of the estimations of prevalence made to date are rough and often based on sales data. The main aim of this study was to  calculate the prevalence of breast implants in Swedish women. The secondary aim was to investigate if it is feasible to establish the occurrence of breast implants with the help of the public mammography screening programme, in a country with a publicly funded welfare-type healthcare system and with a clear documentation of screening...

Career-related injuries and disorders in professional musicians are prevalent across all their respective instruments and fields. They often endure long hours of intensive practice that demand high levels of precision, dexterity, and flexibility of their head, neck, hands, and upper extremities. Unlike the average patient, musicians are sensitive to even mild symptoms and deficits that can interfere with performance, which can potentially be career-threatening. Increasing attention to the care of musicians motivated performing arts medicine to tailor the practice to their individual and unique needs...

PURPOSE: The most common hand fracture in children is seen at the base of the proximal phalanx. This study aims to compare clinical outcomes of single versus double Kirschner wire pinning for pediatric proximal phalanx base fractures. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The retrospective study enrolled patients who underwent closed K-wire pinning for proximal phalanx base fractures from January 2016 to February 2022. We divided patients into two groups based on the number of K-wire inserted (single versus double)...

BACKGROUND: Different women's individual goals with a breast reconstruction vary, and few studies compare techniques in light of the different goals. This study aimed to compare patient-reported core outcomes in patients reconstructed with deep inferior epigastric artery perforator (DIEP) flaps and latissimus dorsi (LD) flaps. Second, breast-related factors that the patients were particularly satisfied/dissatisfied with were analyzed. METHODS: This was a retrospective cross-sectional study, which includes women who had undergone mastectomy and radiation, followed by delayed breast reconstructions with either LD flap and implant or DIEP flap during 2007-2017...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the long-term (>12 months) effectiveness of conservative management for lateral epicondylitis. DATA SOURCES: PubMed and Embase databases were searched for relevant studies from inception to March 2023. STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION: Only English-written randomized controlled trial (RCT) with data download as well as follow up ≥12 months were acceptable. Raw data were extracted into a predefined worksheet, and quality analysis was conducted based on the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool version 2 (RoB2)...