LENI flap reliable for nasal defect reconstruction

(HealthDay)—The lateral extended nasal island (LENI) flap is an effective and predictable single-stage reconstructive technique for medium-size nasal tip defects, according to research published online July 3 in JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery.

Simon J. Madorsky, M.D., from the Skin Cancer and Reconstructive Surgery Center in Newport Beach, California, retrospectively reviewed 97 consecutive cases of patients who underwent reconstruction with the lateral nasal island flaps and LENI flaps from October 2009 to July 2018.

Among 82 patients (mean age, 64 years; 43 percent women) whose flaps qualified as the LENI flap, 65 percent were used for nasal tip reconstruction. Madorsky found a flap advancing distance range of 0.7 cm to 1.8 cm (mean advancing distance, 1.2 cm). Forty-four of 67 patients with available postoperative photographic documentation had mild or undetectable signs of reconstruction, 21 had visible scars, and three had obvious deformities. Sixty-six cases were single-stage procedures, 15 were two-stage, and two cases were three-stage.

"The LENI myocutaneous flap is a reliable technique for reconstruction of the cutaneous defects of the nose with excellent aesthetic outcomes," Madorsky writes. "We believe that it should serve as a workhorse alternative for reconstruction of nasal defects of up to 1.8 cm."

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