Comparative evaluation of clinical efficacy of surgical methods of treatment of patients with extensive posttraumatic defects of soft tissue of the distal areas of lower extremities

Objective. To evaluate clinical effectiveness of the main methods of surgical treatment of patients with extensive post-traumatic soft tissue defects of the distal areas of lower extremities. Materials and methods . A comparative analysis of the results of surgical treatment of 72 patients with extensive post-traumatic soft tissue defects of the distal areas of lower extremities was carried out. They were treated at 432 Order of the Red Star Main Military Clinical Medical Center of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus in the period of 2016-2021. Results. Autodermoplasty with a split skin flap, transplantation of free flaps with the creation of vascular anastomoses and non-free skin-fascial flaps with axial blood supply is accompanied by a high incidence of local postoperative complications in 40-52.4% of cases, the need for repeated surgeries in 33.6-45.2% of patients, a long period of complete wound healing of 24-35 days. Conclusion. Plastic surgery with neurovascular (sural or safenus) flaps can be considered as a basic method of surgical treatment of patients with extensive post-traumatic defects of soft tissues of the distal areas of lower extremities, taking into account justified need for technical improvement of this operation, including additional use of regenerative technologies.