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Breast reconstruction after mastectomy has evolved rapidly in recent years because of public awareness, patient demand, and technical advances. Various methods involving tissue expansion and flap procedures with and without prostheses are currently available. Management of the opposite breast and nipple-areola reconstruction are also options. Patients need to be in good general health to have reconstructive surgery.
We report a new use of the tissue expander for reshaping a breast after resection of a giant tumour. After resection of giant fibroadenomas, two patients had expanders inserted into the tissue defect and gradually reduced in size over five months. This facilitated healing and natural skin shrinkage and resulted in a natural shape and size.
When a breast is being reconstructed with an implant, a capsule of connective tissue always forms around the implant and a capsular contracture can develop. Radiotherapy increases the incidence of capsular contracture. To evaluate the results after breast reconstruction with differently-shaped textured implants, and the effect of radiotherapy on the softness of the reconstruction, 140 patients given permanent breast expander prostheses between 1994 and 2000 were studied. In 99 patients a round implant and in 41 an anatomically-shaped implant was used. Radiotherapy was given to 24 patients. For objective assessment, applanation tonometry was recorded when the desired breast volume was achieved, and 6 and 12 months later. This study showed that, regardless of the shape of the implant, the softness of the breast reconstruction was similar, as shown by the contact area of the applanation tonometry disc. Radiotherapy transiently reduced the softness of the breast.
Traditional breast expanders have known drawbacks, such as undesirable fullness at the upper pole, inadequate expansion of the residual breast tissue, and poor ptosis of the reconstructed breast. Crescent-shaped expanders are thought to improve the result in that expansion is concentrated at the basal breast pole. The aim of this prospective pilot study was to evaluate our results with the crescent-shaped expander in immediate and delayed breast reconstructions. Twenty-five patients, median age 51 (27-75) years, underwent 28 operations. The median follow-up time was 8 (4-15) months. Four patients developed complications including superficial infections, capsular contractions (Baker III-IV), and fullness of the upper pole. Three of these patients had been given irradiation. Breast reconstructions with the crescent-shaped expander allowed expansion of the lower pole and led to an anatomical breast shape. Patients' satisfaction during expansion was good. Our data indicate a correlation between complications and radiotherapy.
Our aim was to evaluate a supplementary method of pain relief following immediate breast reconstruction with submuscular tissue expanders in a descriptive, retrospective analysis. Between 2001 and 2003, 30 patients underwent 36 mastectomies with immediate breast reconstruction using submuscular tissue expanding prostheses. In 20/36 mastectomies an indwelling catheter was introduced behind pectoralis major for periodic injection of local ropivacaine as a supplement to standard postoperative analgesia. This group was compared with the group of patients operated on before the introduction of this method. The oral consumption of opioids was significantly lower in patients with subpectoral indwelling catheters. The hospital stay was reduced in patients with subpectoral indwelling catheters. No patient had an adverse event during the postoperative period. Periodic infusion of local anaesthetics through an indwelling catheter during the early postoperative period reduces the consumption of oral opioids and reduces hospital stay.
We assessed all patients who underwent tissue expansion, excluding breast reconstructions, between 1984 and 1999. A total of 237 patients had 257 expansions, normally for distorted scars, 202 of 257 cases (79%). Their mean age was 27 (range 7-67) years, most being women, 149 of 237 (63%). The mean duration of expansion was 16 weeks (range 0.4-118). The most common site was the skull (61/257). Prophylactic antibiotics were used in 224 of 257 (86%) at the time of expander insertion and 147 of 257 (56%) at the removal of the expander. Sixty-two patients (24%) had minor complications and 34 (13%) had major complications. Tissue expansion can be used with a currently acceptable failure rate though we continue to strive to lower this further.
We report the technical aspects of immediate breast reconstruction of the first 100 consecutive patients done at the Karolinska Hospital. Two patients had bilateral cancer. Preoperative chemotherapy had been given to five patients and postoperative chemotherapy to 13 patients. In 96 patients the indication was breast carcinoma. Mean tumour size was 13.1 mm and always less than 100.0 mm. Radiotherapy had been given preoperatively in nine patients and postoperatively in 10 patients. Mean operation time was 127 minutes, and median operating time 100 minutes. Hospital stay was five days. Breast reconstructions were performed with permanent prostheses in 22, expanders in 66, pedicled TRAM flaps in eight, and free TRAM flaps in four patients. To complete the breast reconstruction one major and 1.4 minor operations were needed. Total time to reconstruction was 461 days. The overall complication rate was 16%, with 13 local complications. Three developed haematomas, seven lost their implants, two developed partial necroses of pedicled TRAM flaps, and one developed abdominal bulging after a free TRAM flap. Patients were followed up after 2.0-5.7 years. The capsular contracture rate in the implant group was 24%.
We report the case of a road accident victim who sustained fracture of the frontal bone and extensive skin loss. Immediate repair of the skin breach was necessary to protect the set bone fragments. Intraoperative skin expansion provided an immediate gain in tissue and avoided the waiting period required with traditional expansion methods. Besides an excellent immediate functional result, acceptable aesthetic results, confirmed 6 months later, were also obtained.
Distortion and movement of tissue expanders can cause expansion of the wrong area, such as the naevus or the scar that is to be resected. In 71 rectangular expanders, we examined the incidence of distortion (over 15 degrees) and movement (over 3 cm). We divided the expanders into three anatomical site groups: scalp, body, and extremities, and compared the complication rate between two study groups (distortion or movement, or not). In total, the incidence of distortion was 15/71 (21%) and that of movement 5/71 (7%). Distortion occurred mainly in the extremities (11/33,33%). The implanted expanders tended to move more often in the body part (3/15, 20%). In the extremities, the bigger the angle between the axis of the implanted expander and that of the extremity, the bigger the angle of distortion. Although the incidence of complications between the two groups was not significant, except for alteration in design of the flap, we recommend that these points should be considered when preoperative plans are being made for appropriate patients.
Of 33 patients who underwent 49 breast implantations for reconstructive surgery, 8 (24%) patients developed implant infections. All 8 of these patients were among a subgroup of 15 having immediate breast reconstructions with tissue expander implants after simple or modified radical mastectomy (a 53% infection rate). The infection rate increased substantially when bilateral procedures involving implants were performed as opposed to unilateral implants. Nine implants were removed (an overall implant loss rate of 18%). Patients who underwent other breast reconstruction techniques (i.e., including immediate reconstruction with permanent implants or delayed reconstruction with or without tissue expanders) did not develop infection unless they had had simultaneous immediate reconstruction with a tissue expander in the contralateral breast. The most frequently isolated organism was the coagulase-negative staphylococcus. The study concludes that neither the tissue expander nor immediate reconstruction is a risk factor, but the combination may lead to an unacceptable infection rate, especially in the face of bilateral breast procedures.
Can a breast-shaped skin envelope that is pendulous be formed through the use of a shaped expander? Once formed, can its shape be maintained following the exchange of the expander for a round implant? My colleagues and I set out to answer these questions by constructing a breast-shaped expander by altering a standard round expander. It was introduced through an inframammary incision while performing a Pennisi-Ryan type reconstruction. The expander was placed in a limited pocket beneath the pectoralis major muscle. The lower pole of the expander was left in the subcutaneous plane. The skin expanded into a mature, pendulous breast shape that exhibited a slight degree of ptosis. The shape was maintained following the exchange of the expander for a high-profile round implant. If contracture occurred, the distortion detracted from the initial pleasing shape. We present our experience with the first 15 reconstructions using this method. The best results were seen in delayed reconstruction cases. The method is of no value in cases of primary reconstruction. Lessons learned from this small series of cases are detailed, and complications are discussed. The follow-up for these patients is a minimum of one year from the beginning of expansion.
Many various complications have been reported with tissue expansion since it was popularized by Radovan. As expected with any foreign body implantation, the most frequent complication is infection. Rupture of the expander is relatively rare even in the face of overexpansion or blunt external trauma. Complications from tissue expansion of the scalp are similar to those encountered with the placement of expanders elsewhere in the body. We had a case recently involving rupture of an expander placed in the scalp of an 18-month-old child as a result of erosion of the outer table with bone spur formation. This was a local reaction to the pressure exerted by the expander. We present the following case report to document another potential complication with tissue expansion of the scalp.
One theory of the cause of connective tissue capsule formation around silicone mammary prostheses is based on an immunological interaction. In an in vitro pilot study, it is shown that intraluminal cyclosporine A, a potent T-lymphocyte-specific immunosuppressive agent, can diffuse slowly through the outer shell of a standard double-lumen silicone breast implant. Round silicone tissue expanders containing 50 mg of cyclosporine A were implanted subcutaneously in 10 rats. Ten animals served as controls. Evaluation was performed after three months. A significant decrease in collagen capsular thickness of 21.6 +/- 5.4 microns (mean +/- standard deviation was measured histomorphometrically in the treated group compared with 39.6 +/- 8.6 microns in the control group (p less than 0.001).
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Total abdominal wall loss results in a difficult reconstructive problem. To obtain stable, durable soft-tissue coverage and restore fascial integrity, a number of reconstructive techniques are frequently required. Use of these techniques can achieve a functional and cosmetically acceptable reconstruction.
The use of pretransfer tissue expansion of a free scapular flap is described. This technique allows coverage of large defects with good quality skin and tensionless closure of the donor site.
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In 20 patients with burn scars and 1 patient with a fresh burn, 33 tissue expanders were implanted. In 16 patients, the expansion fulfilled the goal set with the help of 27 expanders. The results are very satisfactory, but the effort of treatment and the trouble are substantial. Thirteen patients encountered no complications. In terms of expanders, there were 6 major and 11 minor complications. They were infection (three), wound dehiscence (two), insufficient expansion with hematoma (one), leakage (six), superficial skin damage (three), and intercurrent hematoma formation (two). There was no flap necrosis, and thus, apart from superfluous surgery, no real damage. Retrospectively, the major complications could have been avoided by more careful observance of indications. Unfortunately, this seems to be a process that every surgeon must learn by experience and not by theory alone. Here, infection was managed by removal of the expanders. Hematomas should be evacuated early (we drained most expanders), and incidences of leakage can be diminished by using larger valves. Small incisions in healthy tissue for expander insertion may lead to faster onset of expansion, thus, shortening the procedure. Late widening of scars was found only once, perhaps due to a rather long duration of expansion, averaging 13 weeks.