A retrospective comparative study comparing sensory outcomes of free arterialized forearm vs medial plantar venous flaps following finger pulp defect reconstruction.
- 1Department of Operation Care Unit, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, No. 109, XueYuan West Road, Luheng District, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, 325000, China.
- 2Department of Orthopaedics Surgery, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, No. 109, XueYuan West Road, Luheng District, Wenzhou, 325000, Zhejiang Province, P.R. China.
- 3Department of Operation Care Unit, The Second Affiliated Hospital, Yuying Children's Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, No. 109, XueYuan West Road, Luheng District, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, 325000, China. [email protected].
Abstract
Purpose
Sensation is essential for finger pulp functionality. Our objective was to compare the sensory outcomes of forearm vs. medial foot arterialized venous flap reconstruction of finger pulp defects.Methods
We conducted a study involving 26 arterialized venous flap reconstruction in 25 patients for finger pulp damage. The patients were categorized into two groups based on the donor site: the forearm group (n = 14) and the medial foot group (n = 12).Results
All flaps in both the forearm and medial foot groups survived without complications. Patients in the medial foot group experienced significantly improved sensory recovery compared to those in the forearm group. The majority of cases in the forearm group exhibited venous congestion and bullae formation within 5-10 days postoperatively. Conversely, in the medial foot group, all cases were free from venous congestion or bullae formation.Conclusions
Our findings indicate that arterialized venous flaps from the medial foot for finger pulp defect reconstruction yield superior sensory recovery outcomes compared to those from the forearm. Non-sensate arterialized venous flaps from the medial foot can provide satisfactory sensation for finger pulp coverage.Clinical relevance
Level III.Clinical trial number
not applicable.
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BibTeX
@article{bai2026retrospective,
title = {{A retrospective comparative study comparing sensory outcomes of free arterialized forearm vs medial plantar venous flaps following finger pulp defect reconstruction.}},
author = {Lingling Bai and Feiya Zhou and Xian Zhang and Xue Zhang and Wenwen Zheng},
journal = {BMC musculoskeletal disorders},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1186/s12891-026-10272-7},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42907822},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - A retrospective comparative study comparing sensory outcomes of free arterialized forearm vs medial plantar venous flaps following finger pulp defect reconstruction.
AU - Lingling Bai
AU - Feiya Zhou
AU - Xian Zhang
AU - Xue Zhang
AU - Wenwen Zheng
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/01
JO - BMC musculoskeletal disorders
DO - 10.1186/s12891-026-10272-7
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42907822
AB - Purpose Sensation is essential for finger pulp functionality. Our objective was to compare the sensory outcomes of forearm vs. medial foot arterialized venous flap reconstruction of finger pulp defects.Methods We conducted a study involving 26 arterialized venous flap reconstruction in 25 patients for finger pulp damage. The patients were categorized into two groups based on the donor site: the forearm group (n = 14) and the medial foot group (n = 12).Results All flaps in both the forearm and medial foot groups survived without complications. Patients in the medial foot group experienced significantly improved sensory recovery compared to those in the forearm group. The majority of cases in the forearm group exhibited venous congestion and bullae formation within 5-10 days postoperatively. Conversely, in the medial foot group, all cases were free from venous congestion or bullae formation.Conclusions Our findings indicate that arterialized venous flaps from the medial foot for finger pulp defect reconstruction yield superior sensory recovery outcomes compared to those from the forearm. Non-sensate arterialized venous flaps from the medial foot can provide satisfactory sensation for finger pulp coverage.Clinical relevance Level III.Clinical trial number not applicable.
SN - 1471-2474
ER -