Evaluation of Free Tissue Flaps Viability With Capillary Glucose and Lactate Measurements Compared With Clinical Examination

Free tissue flap reconstruction has become a reliable technique. Nevertheless, pedicle thrombosis is dreaded, and the earlier the diagnosis of such complications is made, the higher the surgical salvage rate is.

Clinical monitoring remains the most useful and used monitoring method, but makes late and unreliable diagnosis. Numerous studies are searching for ideal monitoring technics with regard to free flaps. Nowadays, the most efficient ones often deal with expensive and invasive technics. In this study, capillary lactataemia and glycaemia measurements are evaluated for pedicle impairments diagnosis.

Measurements of these 2 biological parameters seem to be a powerful screening test of pedicle impairments in microdialysis. But these parameters are measured in this case in interstitial tissues. Capillary measurements will probably provide different results, and needs to be evaluated.

For that purpose, surgical reconstructions with free tissue flap will be clinically monitored during five days, every hours for the first 24 hours, and every 4 hours for the next 4 days. Simultaneously, blind measurements of capillary lactataemia and glycaemia will be performed. Biological and clinical data will be systematically written in the corresponding table of the individual register together with the time the examination is done.

In this register, all complications and evolutions of the flaps will be recorded.