The prefabricated combined scapula flap for bony and soft-tissue reconstruction in maxillofacial defects - A new method

A concept for improving the precision of reconstruction of the maxilla in terms of form and function, including gnathologic, functional, and prosthetic aspects, is presented with a prefabricated combined scapula flap. In four cases, a bony flap from the lateral border of the scapula with osseointegrated titanium implants, covered with skin grafts and encapsulated with a Goretex sheet to create a stable soft-tissue coverage, was performed. Three months later, the prefabricated combined scapula flap was harvested and transferred to reconstruct a maxillary bony and softtissue defect in the face using microsurgical vascular anastomoses to the facial vessels. One flap was lost because of vascular thrombosis and was repeated successfully 1 year later. In each of the four cases, full dental rehabilitation and marked improvement of the facial contour was achieved in a single surgical intervention on the face. For this purpose, new radiodiagnostic methods for precise correlation between the maxillofacial defect and the donor area were used. With this new concept, an organ-specific reconstruction of soft and bony-tissue defects of the alveolar ridge and the hard palate, with a pseudogingiva and teeth, is possible in an optimal way.