Abstract:

Objective 　To investigate the clinical feasibility of using the descending genicular artery as the recipient artery when the anterior or posterior tibial artery cannot be used to repair the wound around the knee joint by the free anterolateral thigh flap.    Method    From January 2015 to May 2017, the application of the descending artery and great saphenous vein as the recipient vessels for the anterolateral thigh flaps for resurfacing of large-sized skin and soft-tissue defects complicated with bone and tendon exposure around the knee in 7 cases. among the 7 cases, 4 were the male, and 3 female . The flap size ranged from 18 cm × 8 cm to 38 cm × 8 cm.    Results    All patients were followed up for 6~14 months, with an average of 8.9 months. Two largest flaps had necrosis at about 6 cm and 4 cm proximal to the distal margin of the flap, respectively. After the resection, the residual wound were healed with secondly skin grafting. Conclusion    Preoperative accurate positioning through color Doppler ultrasound and measurement of the diameter of the descending genicular artery, blood flow, the use of intraoperative microsurgical techniques to expand the diameter of the descending genicular artery, the descending genicular artery can be used as the recipient artery for the free anterolateral thigh  flap intended for resurfacing of soft-tissue defecst around the knee, and satisfactory clinical efficacy can be achieved.

Key words: Descending genicular artery;　Anterolateral thigh flap, 　The knee joint;　 Transplant