The goal of ankle fracture management is to restore a stable and congruent joint. Operative management is recommended for most displaced fractures, fractures with dislocations, and open fractures.
This video article walks through the surgical management of a 23-year-old male who sustained a trimalleolar ankle fracture with concomitant dislocation and syndesmotic injury following a motor vehicle collision. Dr. Weaver discusses the surgical landmarks and approaches to the ankle, the methods of fixing the malleoli and the syndesmosis, and common concerns that arise during the surgical management of ankle fractures.
Resection of cutaneous malignancies may result in substantial skin defects. Often, skin grafting is a first-line option for reconstruction of such defects but may be limited by poor cosmetic outcomes and incomplete graft acceptance. Accordingly, skin flaps, tissue rearrangement techniques, and more complex procedures may be needed. This case report presents the successful use of a combination of nasolabial flap and rhomboid flap for reconstruction of a 3-cm × 2-cm left nasal sidewall and ala skin defect that remained following a basal cell cancer Mohs resection. The flaps were quickly and easily fashioned, did not require any special instruments, and resulted in a good cosmetic outcome. There were no wound complications and the flaps healed completely with excellent contour, texture, thickness, color match, and complete patient satisfaction. This case is an example of the technical aspects of successful planning, elevation, and inset of a nasolabial flap and rhomboid flap.
Pilonidal disease is a chronic skin and subcutaneous infection emanating from the center of the natal cleft, often extending to the buttocks. Treatment depends on the disease pattern. An acute abscess is treated with drainage and antibiotics, while a complex or recurring infection is treated surgically with either excision of a cyst or unroofing of a sinus tract. Reconstructive flap techniques such as the Bascom cleft lift procedure, Karydakis flap, rhomboid, or Z-plasty can be done to reduce the risk of recurrence by leaving less scar tissue and flattening the region between the buttocks. Here, Dr. Reinhorn at Tufts University School of Medicine presents the case of a male patient who had previously had flap surgery for pilonidal disease, but experienced recurrence and the development of a sinus tract. Due to the extensive nature of the disease, a deep flap was required to mobilize tissues and close the eventual wound. A deep flap like this is often only required in re-do surgery, rather than for primary disease, for which only a 1-cm subcutaneous flap is required.
Hereditary Diffuse Gastric Cancer (HDGC) syndrome is due to a mutation in the CDH1 gene that predisposes patients to a high lifetime risk of developing gastric cancer. As such, a total gastrectomy is typically recommended for patients with this syndrome. In this case, the patient presented with an incidentally discovered CDH1 mutation on genetic testing obtained after she was diagnosed with early-onset rectal cancer. In this video, Dr. Mullen at MGH demonstrates his technique for performing an open prophylactic total gastrectomy with a Roux-en-Y esophagojejunostomy reconstruction.