Outcomes of Tissue Expander Application for Scalp Reconstruction in Extensive Aplasia Cutis Congenita

• Published in: Aesthetic plastic surgery Vol. 40; no. 1; pp. 114 - 119
• Main Authors: Gencel, Eyuphan, Eser, Cengiz, Tabakan, Ibrahim, Kesiktas, Erol, Yavuz, Metin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.02.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adult; Child; Child, Preschool; Ectodermal Dysplasia - surgery; Female; Humans; Male; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Original Article; Otorhinolaryngology; Plastic Surgery; Reconstructive Surgical Procedures - methods; Retrospective Studies; Scalp - surgery; Tissue Expansion; Treatment Outcome; Young Adult; Alopecia; Scalp; Aplasia cutis congenita; Tissue expansion; Osteogenesis
• ISSN: 0364-216X; 1432-5241
• DOI: 10.1007/s00266-015-0584-7

Introduction Aplasia cutis congenita (ACC) is a rare congenital disorder. The purpose of this study was to present outcomes of tissue expander application for scalp reconstruction in extensive ACC. Patient/Methods In this retrospective study, medical records were reviewed for six patients who underwent serial tissue expander application for scalp reconstruction in ACC between 2000 and 2015. Patient average age was 14.5 (range, 4–25 years). One of the six cases had frontal bone defect, the others had bone and soft tissue defect at the vertex. In the newborn period, all patients have been managed by split-thickness skin grafts without cranioplasty procedures. After grafting and calvarial regeneration, one (or more) sessions of tissue expanders and scalp flap applications were performed for alopecia and soft tissue correction. Radiologic and clinical examination was performed for complications and outcomes. Results Computerized tomography showed intact calvarium with patchy hyperostosis in all patients. The mean size of grafted areas was 69.5 cm 2 (range, 32–148.5 cm 2 ). Minimal distal flap necrosis (6 × 1 cm) was observed in one patient. Serial scalp tissue expansion was performed with at least one session in a 1-year interval. One expander was extracted due to exposition and infection. No total flap losses and no calvarial defects were observed during follow-up (mean; 8.6 years). Clinical examination revealed acceptable cosmetic results in all patients. Conclusion We advocate late expander scalp reconstruction for management of extensive ACC cases. Level of Evidence IV This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .