CASE: A 78-year-old Chinese man presented to our unit with chronic tophaceous gout complicated by osteomyelitis of the left first metatarsophalangeal joint (1MTPJ). The patient underwent multiple debridements, resulting in a critical bone defect. Reconstruction of the first ray with 1MTPJ arthrodesis was performed using a vascularized medial femoral condyle free flap (MFC-FF). At the 1-year follow-up, plain radiographs demonstrated satisfactory bony union and patient-reported outcome measures were optimal. CONCLUSION: The MFC-FF can be an effective option for reconstruction of small bone defects in the foot due to osteomyelitis.
Yeo et al. (2026) studied this question.