Versatility of the buccinator myomucosal flap in atypical palate reconstructions

• Published in: Journal of cranio-maxillo-facial surgery 2014-10, Vol.42 (7), p.1310-1314
• Main Authors: Franco, Diogo, Rocha, Diógenes, Arnaut, Marcio, Freitas, Renato, Alonso, Nivaldo
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Cheek - surgery; Child; Cocaine-Related Disorders - surgery; Dentistry; Dissection - methods; Facial Muscles - transplantation; Female; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Mouth Diseases - surgery; Mouth Mucosa - transplantation; Mouth rehabilitation; Mouth – anatomy; Necrosis; Oral Fistula - surgery; Palatal Neoplasms - surgery; Palate - surgery; Palate – anatomy; Palate, Hard - injuries; Palate, Hard - surgery; Palate, Soft - surgery; Reconstructive Surgical Procedures - methods; Retrospective Studies; Surgery; Surgical Flaps - transplantation; Transplant Donor Site - surgery; Velopharyngeal Insufficiency - surgery
• ISSN: 1010-5182; 1878-4119
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jcms.2014.03.016

Abstract Initially described for the treatment of cleft palate, the anatomical bases of the buccinator myomucosal flap were described by Bozola et al. (1989) . A meticulous search found several reports of its use for the correction of post-palatoplasty oronasal fistulas, with only a few reports of its use for other palate-related pathologies. A retrospective analysis was undertaken of patients treated by the Plastic Surgery Units at the Rio de Janeiro Federal University Hospital (HU-UFRJ) and the São Paulo University Hospital (HC-USP), suffering from palatal lesions not associated with a cleft palate and treated through the use of buccinator myomucosal flaps. The average age was 47 years, with 70% of the patients being male. Assorted aetiologies were noted for palatal defects. When there was significant damage to the soft palate, a superior base pharyngeal flap was used. Of this total, in 71% of the cases only the buccinator myomucosal flap was used. In all cases, the flaps were unilateral, adequately covering the defects in question. The buccinator myomucosal flap is a good option for reconstructing medium to large palate defects, as it is a flap with good vascularization and dimension, in addition to an ample arc of rotation, with primary closure of the donor site, without adding significant morbidity.