Pedicled Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator Flap for Lower Abdominal Defects and Genital Reconstructive Surgery

Abstract

The pedicled deep inferior epigastric perforator (DIEP) flap can be used successfully to reconstruct the lower abdominal, inguinal, and genital regions. This muscle-sparing technique offers many advantages, such as minimal donor-site morbidity, a wide arch of rotation, and more versatile flap design, and provides for easier reconstruction than free flaps. Four pedicled DIEP flap cases are described in this article. The flaps were used to reconstruct lower abdominal defects and groin defects and to perform a penile reconstruction. To the best of our knowledge, ours is the first report in the English literature to describe the use of a pedicled DIEP flap for penile reconstruction. The donor sites were closed directly, and morbidity in all cases was minimal.