THE USE OF PREFABRICATED FASCIAL FLAPS FOR LINING OF THE ORAL AND NASAL CAVITIES

Twelve temporoparietal fascial flaps were prefabricated to line the oral and/or nasal cavities in 10 patients. Bilateral flaps were used both in a patient suffering from lye ingestion and in a patient undergoing bilateral lip reconstruction. All reconstructions were performed in two stages separated by 3 to 4 weeks. The first stage involved creation of an epithelial lining by placing a non-hair-bearing skin graft over the temporoparietal fascia. The second stage raised the fascial flaps as vascular islands and transferred them as either pedicled or free flaps. All 12 flaps survived and improved function for the patients involved. Although all possible applications for this flap have not been explored fully, there appears to be great potential for the use of this procedure in refined reconstructions of moderately sized intraoral and nasal defects.