Measurement of distal stump pressure of branches of the external carotid artery and the feasibility of the distal stumps in retrograde blood supply fashion to nourish the free flap

doi:10.19438/j.cjoms.2022.01.006

Abstract

Abstract: PURPOSE: To measure the stump pressure of branches of the external carotid artery and investigate the feasibility of the distal stumps in reversed blood flow to perfuse the free flap. METHODS: The superior thyroid artery, lingual artery, facial artery and superficial temporal artery were respectively cannulated with a 22 gauge cannula connected to a transducer, which in turn was connected to a Philips monitor, the initial mean arterial pressure (MAP) and distal stump MAP after occlusion were determined. The ratio between initial MAP and the stump MAP was defined as the stump pressure ratio. The stump pressure ratio of the external carotid artery branches in this study and that of the documented lower limb vessel were compared and analyzed. RESULTS: The stump pressure ratio of the branch vessels of the external carotid artery reached more than 70%, greater than the recorded stump pressure ratios of the lower limb vessel. CONCLUSIONS: It is feasible to perfuse the free flap with reversed recipient artery in head and neck region based on the sufficient stump pressure after occlusion of the branch vessels of the external carotid artery.

Key words: Distally based free flap, Retrograde recipient artery, Mean arterial pressure, Stump pressure ratio

CLC Number:

782.2

CHEN Chuan-jun, WANG Yi, XIANG Xian-wang, LI Tao, HU Li-guo. Measurement of distal stump pressure of branches of the external carotid artery and the feasibility of the distal stumps in retrograde blood supply fashion to nourish the free flap[J]. China Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, 2022, 20(1): 32-36.

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