Tag Archives: z-plasty

Global Surgery, Hand Surgery, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, Print Release

PUBLISHED: Flexor Digitorum Superficialis to Flexor Digitorum Profundus (STP) Transfer, Adductor Release, and Z-Plasty for a Pediatric, Stroke-Induced Left Hand Spastic Contracture

Flexor Digitorum Superficialis to Flexor Digitorum Profundus (STP) Transfer, Adductor Release, and Z-Plasty for a Pediatric, Stroke-Induced Left Hand Spastic Contracture
Sudhir B. Rao, MD1; Mark N. Perlmutter, MS, MD, FICS, FAANOS2; Arya S. Rao3
1Big Rapids Orthopaedics
2Carolina Regional Orthopaedics
3Columbia University

This video article demonstrate surgical correction of a severe hand deformity in a teenage girl with spastic hemiplegia. This patient has a non-functioning hand due to severe spasticity. Correction of the deformity is indicated primarily to facilitate hygiene and improve the position of the fingers. In some patients with volitional control, a certain degree of prehension may be achieved. The basic principles of deformity correction include differential sectioning of sublimis and profundus tendons followed by repair in a lengthened position. The first web contracture is released by muscular release and a skin Z-plasty.

Plastic Surgery, Print Release

PUBLISHED: Local Tissue Rearrangement for Hypertrophic Chemical Burn: Z-Plasty and VY-Plasty

Local Tissue Rearrangement for Hypertrophic Chemical Burn: Z-Plasty and VY-Plasty
Daniel N. Driscoll, MD, FACS¹; Lisa Gfrerer, MD, PhD²; Robert Dabek, MD³; Aleia M. Boccardi*
¹Shriners Hospitals for Children – Boston
²Harvard Plastic Surgery Combined Residency Program
³Massachusetts General Hospital
*Touro University College of Osteopathic Medicine

Hypertrophic scarring following burn injuries has been shown to occur in up to 70% of patients, potentially causing both long-term psychological and physical morbidity. Increased rates of depression and anxiety are seen to arise from aesthetic dissatisfaction, affecting patient rehabilitation and subsequent societal interaction. Mobility is jeopardized from contractures that develop within the damaged tissue, leading to decreased range of motion and function of the area. Both sequelae leave the patient with an overall decreased quality of life.

Surgical techniques involving local tissue rearrangement, including Z-plasty and VY-plasty can be employed to improve both the function and cosmetic effects of burn scars. Essentially, these techniques illicit a decrease in tension through a lengthening of contracted tissue of up to 50–70%, allowing for better static alignment and increased mobility over joint surfaces. This video depicts the combination of both tissue rearrangement techniques as applied to hypertrophic scar contractures resulting from prior burn injuries. These techniques are an invaluable part of a reconstructive surgeons’ armamentarium when approaching scar revision.

Global Surgery, Hand Surgery, Orthopedics, Pediatrics, Preprint Release

PREPRINT RELEASE: Flexor Digitorum Superficialis to Flexor Digitorum Profundus (STP) Transfer, Adductor Release, and Z-Plasty for a Pediatric, Stroke-Induced Left Hand Spastic Contracture


Flexor Digitorum Superficialis to Flexor Digitorum Profundus (STP) Transfer, Adductor Release, and Z-Plasty for a Pediatric, Stroke-Induced Left Hand Spastic Contracture
Hospital Leonardo Martinez, Honduras

Sudhir B. Rao, MD
Big Rapids Orthopaedics

Mark N. Perlmutter, MS, MD, FICS, FAANOS
Carolina Regional Orthopaedics

The patient in this case is a 15-year-old female who had a stroke several years ago and now has a left hand spastic contracture. Here, Dr. Rao and Dr. Perlmutter perform an STP transfer, an adductor release, and a Z-plasty to lengthen the flexor tendons of the hand and repair her thumb-in-palm deformity. This case was performed during a surgical mission to Honduras with the World Surgical Foundation.

Announcement, Plastic Surgery, Preprint Release

PREPRINT RELEASE: Local Tissue Rearrangement for Hypertrophic Chemical Burn: Z-Plasty and VY-Plasty


Local Tissue Rearrangement for Hypertrophic Chemical Burn: Z-Plasty and VY-Plasty
Shriners Hospitals for Children – Boston

Daniel N. Driscoll, MD, FACS
Division of Plastic, Reconstructive, and Laser Surgery
Shriners Hospitals for Children – Boston

Lisa Gfrerer, MD, PhD
Harvard Plastic Surgery Combined Residency Program

Robert J. Dabek, MD
Research Fellow
Massachusetts General Hospital

In what is our first plastic surgery case, we follow part of the treatment of an 18-year-old male who developed hypertrophic chemical burn scars resulting from an attack with sulfuric acid. Here, Dr. Daniel Driscoll performs two Z-plasties and a VY-plasty in order to relieve some of the tension resulting from these scars.