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PRP enhanced neovascularization and incorporation in a rat model of VHR. Enhanced neovascularization was associated with earlier and greater tissue deposition on the ADM. This suggests that PRP could be used as an adjunct to VHR in clinical scenarios where poor wound healing is anticipated and enhanced neovascularization and early tissue deposition are desired.

Free tissue transfer has revolutionized lower extremity reconstruction; however, its use in elderly patients with multiple medical problems can be associated with elevated rate s of perioperative morbidity and mortality. This study evaluates the use of acellular dermal matrix (ADM) in conjunction with negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) and delayed skin graft application as an alternative to free tissue transfer in this compromised population. Bilayer, ADM (Integra, Plainsboro, NJ) was used in conjunction with NPWT (Wound V.A.C, Kinetic Concepts Inc., San Antonio, TX) to achieve vascularized coverage of complex lower extremity wounds with denuded tendon and bone in elderly, medically compromised patients. Following incorporation, the matrix was covered with split-thickness skin graft. Four patients (age range, 50 to 76 years) with multiple medical comorbidities were treated with the above protocol. The average time to complete vascularization of the matrix was 29 days. Definitive closure with split-thickness skin graft was achieved in three patients and one wound healed by secondary intention. No medical or surgical complications were encountered and stable soft tissue coverage was achieved in all patients. This early experience suggests that dermal substitute and NPWT with delayed skin graft application can provide a reasonable tissue-engineered alternative to free tissue transfer in the medically compromised individual.

Muscle flaps have proved to be a valuable and versatile tool in the surgical treatment of the severely compromised lower extremity. Utilized as both local pedicle flaps and free tissue transfers, muscles have been successfully employed to cover complex wounds, manage osteomyelitis, salvage infected vascular grafts, treat recalcitrant venous stasis ulcers, preserve amputation levels, and restore motion following compartment syndrome. Free flap pedicles have also been used in a flow-through fashion to create a distal arterial bypass. This article explores the multipurpose role of muscle flaps in limb salvage surgery and their beneficial physiologic characteristics in hostile wound environments.

The degree of cross-linking within acellular dermal matrices (ADM) seems to correlate to neovascularization when used in ventral hernia repair (VHR). Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) enhances wound healing through several mechanisms including neovascularization, but research regarding its effect on soft tissue healing in VHR is lacking. We sought to study the effect of cross-linking on PRP-induced neovascularization in a rodent model of bridging VHR. We hypothesized that ADM cross-linking would negatively affect PRP-induced neovessel formation. PRP was extracted and characterized from pooled whole blood. Porcine cross-linked (cADM) and non-cross-linked ADMs (ncADM) were implanted in a rat model of chronic VHR after treatment with saline (control) or PRP. Neovascularization of samples at 2, 4, and 6 weeks was assessed by hematoxylin and eosin and immunohistochemical staining of CD 31. Adhesion severity at necropsy was compared using a previously validated scale. Addition of PRP increased neovascularization in both cADM and ncADM at 2- and 4-week time points but appeared to do so in a dependent fashion, with significantly greater neovascularization in the PRP-treated ncADMs compared to cADMs. Omental adhesions were increased in all PRP-treated groups. Results indicate that, for 2-week measurements when compared with the cADM group without PRP therapy, the mean change in neovascularization due to ncADM was 3.27 (Z = 2.75, p = 0.006), PRP was 17.56 (Z = 14.77, p < 0.001), and the combined effect of ncADM and PRP was 9.41 (Z = 5.6, p < 0.001). The 4-week data indicate that the average neovascularization change due to ncADM was 0.676 (Z = 0.7, p = 0.484), PRP was 7.69 (Z = 7.95, p < 0.001), and combined effect of ncADM and PRP was 5.28 (Z = 3.86, p < 0.001). These findings validate PRP as a clinical adjunct to enhance the native tissue response to implantable biomaterials and suggest that ncADM is more amenable than cADM to induced neovascularization. PRP use could be advantageous in patients undergoing VHR where poor incorporation is anticipated and early-enhanced neovascularization is desired.