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We performed distal bypass and free flap transfer in a single-stage operation to repair an extensive soft tissue defect in an ischemic foot of an 84-year-old woman. The nutrient artery of the free flap was anastomosed to the bypass graft in an end-to-side manner. Subsequently, the bypass graft became occluded on several occasions. Although intravascular and surgical interventions were performed each time, the bypass graft eventually became completely occluded. However, despite late occlusion of the nutrient artery, the free flap has remained viable and the patient is ambulatory. The time required for a transplanted free flap to become completely viable without a nutrient artery is likely longer for an ischemic foot compared with a healthy foot. However, the exact period of time required is not known. A period of month was required in our patient. We report this case to help clarify the process by which a free flap becomes viable when applied to an ischemic foot.

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Early excision and skin grafting is the principle treatment for a burned hand although there are occasions when it cannot be done such as severe general condition, delayed consultation, and the lack of a definitive assessment of burn depth. This study analyzes the factors that affected function after a delayed excision and skin graft for hands with a deep dermal burn. This study retrospectively evaluated 43 burned hands that required a delayed excision and split-thickness skin graft on the dorsal side. Cases were required to only have split-thickness skin grafting from the dorsum of the hand and fingers distally to at least the proximal interphalangeal joint at least 8 days after the injury. The hands were divided into two functional categories: Functional category A, normal or nearly normal joint movements, and functional category B, abnormal joint movements. Demographic data were assessed statistically by a univariate analysis following a multiple regression analysis by a stepwise selection. A significant difference was observed between the groups in the number of days from grafting to complete wound healing of the graft site and with or without an escharotomy in the analysis. These parameters were statistically significant predictors of functional category B. The functional outcome of a burned hand after a delayed excision and split-thickness skin graft on the dorsal side became degraded depending on the number of days from grafting to complete wound healing. Cases that underwent an escharotomy also showed deterioration in function.

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The sentinel lymph node (SLN) is the first node in the lymphatic basin to be affected by metastatic tumor cells from a primary lesion. It provides a way to avoid elective neck dissection in a case in which there is no metastasis to the SLN. However, identification and excision of the SLN may be difficult due to the shine-through phenomenon, as the SLN in the parotid gland is either located close to the primary lesion or, in many cases, the lymph node of the parotid gland is small and covered by fibrous capsula. When we conducted an SLN biopsy on a 68-year-old male patient with malignant melanoma of the cheeks, the metastasis to the node of the parotid gland identified as the SLN was negative; however, 1 year later, the melanoma recurred on the lymph node of the parotid gland, or in other words, we experienced a false-negative SLN. SLN biopsy in the parotid gland is difficult because the lymph node is small and covered by fibrous capsula. We may consider a total or partial resection of the superficial lobe of the parotid gland, particularly when identification of an SLN in the parotid gland is difficult. Therefore, we propose a new algorithm for SLN biopsy in the parotid gland.

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BACKGROUND: In Japan, elective lymph node dissection (ELND) has been the standard treatment for patients with possible nodal melanoma. Sentinel node biopsy (SNB) has now replaced ELND, not only in Japan but also worldwide. The objective of this study was to compare the interim outcomes of SNB and ELND. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted among patients with clinically node-negative disease treated at our institute with either SNB (n = 30) or ELND (n = 72). RESULTS: The background was similar in the two groups. Nodal metastases were found in 40.0% of patients in the SNB group, but in only 26.4% in the ELND group (P = 0.173). The median follow-up was 31.5 months for the SNB group and 82 months for the ELND group. The incidence of locoregional recurrence and distant metastasis in the SNB group was 10.0% and 16.7%, respectively, and for the ELND group the incidence was 5.6% and 31.9%, respectively. The 3-year disease-free survival rate was similar in the two groups (P = 0.280), and the 3-year disease-free survival rates for node-positive patients were also similar in the two groups (P = 0.90), as were the 3-year disease-free survival rates for node-negative patients (P = 0.193). CONCLUSION: This interim result in a Japanese melanoma population with clinically node-negative disease demonstrated that SNB identified more nodal micrometastases than ELND. This increase in accurate staging likely resulted from the reliable identification of the lymph node field by lymphoscintigraphy, as well as the more detailed pathologic examination of the nodes removed in SNB. It is quite reasonable to perform SNB instead of ELND in this population.

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Little has been written about reconstructive methods after resection of melanomas in the head and neck region. We investigated reconstructive methods retrospectively related to the site and size of the melanomas resected by examining the medical records of 28 patients who had malignant melanomas of the head and neck resected at our hospital from 1984 to 2001. The tumour distribution was 12 in the cheek, 6 in the conjunctiva, 2 in the upper lip, 2 in the lower lip, one each in the lower eyelid, eyebrow, scalp, nose, and auricle. Reconstructive methods were 18 skin grafts, seven local flaps, and three free flaps. Three patients who had skin grafts required secondary reconstruction using free flaps. No local recurrences were observed. Reconstructions with local flaps give better aesthetical and functional results than free flaps and skin grafts. Immediate reconstruction with a flap is safe and it does not affect observation of local recurrences.

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BACKGROUND: Superficial leiomyosarcoma is a rare soft-tissue tumor. Management of this tumor, including pathological evaluations and therapies, is not clearly defined in the existing literature. METHODS: Ten patients with superficial leiomyosarcoma treated in our institutes were recalled and scheduled for examination. Assessments were carried out according to clinical characteristics, therapies used, histological grade (based on the grading system of the Fédération Nationale des Centres de Lutte Contre Le Cancer), tumor-node-metastasis stage (using the American Joint Committee on Cancer staging system), recurrences rates, state of metastases, and the current condition of each patient. RESULTS: No local recurrences or distant metastases were seen in eight patients with low-grade and early-stage disease, whereas two patients with high-grade and advanced-stage disease had recurrence and one of these two patients died of the disease. CONCLUSIONS: This study indicates that evaluations using the Fédération Nationale des Centres de Lutte Contre Le Cancer grading system and the American Joint Committee on Cancer tumor staging system were useful. The authors advocate that surgical treatment of low-grade cutaneous leiomyosarcoma by complete excision with a narrow margin is adequate. For low-grade and early-state subcutaneous or soft-tissue leiomyosarcoma, wide excision with a minimum 2-cm lateral margin and one-tissue barrier deep margin is recommended. Management of high-grade leiomyosarcomas is still difficult; adequate wide excision may be the only option.

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BACKGROUND: In extramammary Paget's disease, compared with patients with carcinoma in situ (CIS), patients with malignancies underlying dermis and subcutaneous tissues or lymph node metastasis appear to have a much worse prognosis. OBJECTIVE: The purpose was to examine our extramammary Paget's diseases patients in terms of pathological tumor invasion, lymph node metastasis, and prognosis and to refer to indications of lymph node dissection. METHODS: The 34 patients were divided into four groups by pathological tumor invasion: CIS, microinvasion to the papillary dermis (MIPD), invasion to the reticular dermis (IRD), and invasion to subcutaneous tissues (IST). Their age, sex ratio, follow-up periods, history of other cancers, lymph node metastasis, and prognosis were compared among the four groups and referred to indications of lymph node dissection. RESULTS: In the groups of CIS and MIPD, all patients appeared to have no lymph node metastasis and death caused by this disease. In the groups of IRD and IST, 8 of 12 patients showed pathological lymph node metastasis, and all of them died due to metastasis of the tumor. In the cumulative survival rate of the patients according to the level of invasion, 5-year survival rate was 100% in CIS and MIPD groups, 33.3% in the IRD group, and 0% in the IST group. CONCLUSION: In the treatment of extramammary Paget's disease, indications of lymph node dissection are an important issue as well as wide local excision. From this prospective study, we have developed an algorithm for indications of lymph node dissection.

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