Flexion Contracture of Phalangeal Joint after Digital Artery Flap: Comparison between Zigzag Incision and Midlateral Incision

Abstract

In general, skin incisions made in the fingers are midlateral or zigzag incisions, but there is no consensus on the difference in their usefulness in flaps. Therefore, we investigated postoperative flexion contracture due to differences in skin incisions in 9 cases of digital artery island flaps. As a result, flexion contracture of the PIP joint developed in 1 case in which the zigzag incision was performed in a reverse digital artery island flap and in 1 case in which the zigzag incision was performed in a heterodigital finger island flap. Thus, the zigzag incision may cause postoperative flexion contracture more often than the midlateral incision in digital artery island flaps.