Microsurgical free musculocutaneous flap for an infected diabetic foot

Abstract EN

The diabetic foot is frequently susceptible to extensive infections and for its management a lot of tissue should be sacrificed.

Vessel obliteration of the main arterial trunks associated with diabetic microangiopathy in most cases lead to major segmental amputations.

Classics techniques of tissue revascularization using by-pass techniques are usually not effective in these pathologic conditions.

Therefore, for well-selected cases (based on clinical examination, Doppler, angiography), the free tissue transfer may represent an alternative to amputation. The authors report the case of a diabetic patient who sustained a free transfer for plantar coverage, including the long-term postoperative improvement during 44 months.

The final result stimulates us to consider the free tissue transfer as a viable solution for defect coverage in the diabetic foot.