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Background:  Abdominal wall vascularized composite allotransplantation (AW-VCA) can be considered as a technically feasible option for abdominal wall reconstruction in patients whose abdomen cannot be closed using traditional methods. However, successful initial abdominal wall revascularization in the setting of visceral organ transplantation can pose a major challenge as graft ischemia time, operating in a limited surgical field, and variable recipient and donor anatomy must be considered. Several techniques have been reported to accomplish abdominal wall revascularization., Methods:  A literature review was performed using PubMed for articles related to "abdominal wall transplantation (AWT)." The authors of this study sorted through this search for relevant publications that describe abdominal wall transplant anatomy, technical descriptions, and outcomes of various techniques., Results:  A total of four distinct revascularization techniques were found in the literature. Each of these techniques was described by the respective authors and reported varying patient outcomes. Levi et al published a landmark article in 2003 that described technical feasibility of AWT with anastomosis between donor external iliac and inferior epigastric vessels with recipient common iliac vessels in end-to-side fashion. Cipriani et al described a microsurgical technique with anastomosis between donor and recipient inferior epigastric vessels in an end-to-end fashion. Giele et al subsequently proposed banking the abdominal wall allograft in the forearm to reduce graft ischemia time. Recently, Erdmann et al described the utilization of an arteriovenous loop for synchronous revascularization of abdominal wall and visceral transplants for reduction of ischemia time, operative time, while eliminating the need for further operations., Conclusion:  Vascularized composite allotransplantation continues to advance with improving immunotherapy and outcomes in solid organ transplantation. Optimizing surgical techniques remains paramount as the field continues to grow. Refinement of the presented methods will continue as additional evidence and outcomes become available in AW-VCA., Competing Interests: None declared., (Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.)

Purpose of Review: Abdominal wall transplantation is a technique used to achieve abdominal closure after intestinal and multivisceral transplantation. This review focuses on whether there are additional benefits for the skin component as an immune-monitoring tool., Recent Findings: The largest series of abdominal wall transplants has recently been published. Alongside the physiological advantage gained in abdominal closure, the authors describe the immunological insight that the skin component can provide and how this contributes to the management of patients. The skin appears to develop a rash with early rejection, which facilitates early systemic treatment before significant visceral rejection occurs. It can also help in cases in which there is diagnostic doubt regarding the cause of bowel dysfunction such as in instances of intestinal infection. Despite the additional immunological burden of donor tissue, there appears to be no requirement for increased immunosuppressive therapy., Summary: The technical and immunological feasibility of abdominal wall transplantation has now been demonstrated by several centres. Skin transplanted as part of the abdominal wall or as a separate vascularized sentinel skin flap may aid in the diagnosis of rejection. This has the potential to improve graft survival and reduce immunosuppressive morbidity.

Abdominal wall transplantation (AWTX) has revolutionized difficult abdominal closure after intestinal transplantation (ITX). More important, the skin of the transplanted abdominal wall (AW) may serve as an immunological tool for differential diagnosis of bowel dysfunction after transplant. Between August 2008 and October 2014, 29 small bowel transplantations were performed in 28 patients (16 male, 12 female; aged 41 ± 13 years). Two groups were identified: the solid organ transplant (SOT) group (n = 15; 12 ITX and 3 modified multivisceral transplantation [MMVTX]) and the SOT-AWTX group (n = 14; 12 ITX and 2 MMVTX), with the latter including one ITX-AWTX retransplantation. Two doses of alemtuzumab were used for induction (30 mg, 6 and 24 h after reperfusion), and tacrolimus (trough levels 8-12 ng/mL) was used for maintenance immunosuppression. Patient survival was similar in both groups (67% vs. 61%); however, the SOT-AWTX group showed faster posttransplant recovery, better intestinal graft survival (79% vs. 60%), a lower intestinal rejection rate (7% vs. 27%) and a lower rate of misdiagnoses in which viral infection was mistaken and treated as rejection (14% vs. 33%). The skin component of the AW may serve as an immune modulator and sentinel marker for immunological activity in the host. This can be a vital tool for timely prevention of intestinal graft rejection and, more important, avoidance of overimmunosuppression in cases of bowel dysfunction not related to graft rejection., (© Copyright 2015 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.)

Purpose of Review: Primary closure of the abdominal wall remains one of the early challenges of intestinal transplantation. Our aim is to review the role of abdominal wall transplantation in achieving tension-free closure of the abdomen., Recent Findings: In total, 38 full-thickness vascularized abdominal wall transplants, six partial-thickness vascularized and 17 partial-thickness nonvascularized rectus facia grafts have been reported worldwide. Different techniques have been described. The most popular choice seems to be the full-thickness vascularized abdominal wall allograft, where the anastomosis is performed either in a micro- or macrovascular fashion. Temporary 'remote' revascularisation of the allograft has been performed in some cases onto the recipient's forearm vessels when there is a long anticipated cold ischaemia time (>5 h). Preliminary data suggest that the abdominal wall skin rejection might be an early predictor of intestinal rejection. Vascularized and nonvascularized rectus fascia may be effective when there is inadequate healthy muscle/fascia but sufficient skin cover., Summary: Several centres have already proved the technical and immunologic feasibility of partial or full-thickness abdominal wall transplantation. It is an effective option to achieve primary abdominal closure following intestinal transplantation and in its full-thickness form, it may be useful for monitoring rejection in visceral organs.

Primary abdominal wall closure following small bowel transplantation is frequently impossible due to contraction of the abdominal domain. Although abdominal wall transplantation was reported 10 years ago this, technique has not been widely adopted, partly due to its complexity, but largely because of concerns that storing the abdominal allograft until the end of a prolonged intestinal transplant procedure would cause severe ischemia-reperfusion injury. We report six cases of combined small bowel and abdominal wall transplantation where the ischemic time was minimized by remotely revascularizing the abdominal wall on the forearm vessels, synchronous to the intestinal procedure. When the visceral transplant was complete, the abdominal wall was removed from the forearm and revascularized on the abdomen (n = 4), or used to close the abdomen while still vascularized on the forearm (n = 2). Primary abdominal wall closure was achieved in all. Mean cold ischemia was 305 min (300-330 min), and revascularization on the arm was 50 min (30-60 min). Three patients had proven abdominal wall rejection, all treated successfully. Immediate revascularization of the abdominal wall allograft substantially reduces cold ischemia without imposing constraints on the intestinal transplant. Reducing storage time may also have benefits with respect to ischemia-reperfusion-related graft immunogenicity., (© Copyright 2014 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.)

We report our outcomes following combined intestinal and abdominal wall transplantation, focusing on the presentation and treatment of acute rejection of the abdominal wall vascularized composite allograft (VCA). Retrospective analysis of all patients with combined intestinal/VCA transplantation was undertaken. Graft abnormalities were documented photographically and biopsies taken, with histological classification of rejection according to Banff 2007 guidelines. We have performed five combined intestinal and abdominal wall transplants to date. Two patients developed erythematous, maculopapular to papular eruptions confined to the VCA, histologically confirmed as grade II/III rejection, yet with normal bowel on endoscopy. Both patients' rashes resolved within 72 h of increasing immunosuppressive treatment. One patient later developed a recurrence of the rash, confirmed as skin rejection, but did not immediately seek medical attention. Treatment was therefore delayed, and mild intestinal rejection developed. We describe the rash associated with VCA rejection, and propose that while the skin of an abdominal wall VCA may reject independently of the intestinal allograft, delay in treatment of rejection episodes may result in rejection of the intestinal graft., (© Copyright 2013 The American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.)

Accurate diagnosis of allograft rejection can be hazardous and challenging. A strategy that has emerged from experience with vascularized composite allografts (VCAs) is the use of sentinel skin transplants (SSTs)—portions of donor skin transplanted synchronously to an allograft. Work in nonhuman animal models and experience with VCAs suggest concordance between rejection occurring in the primary allograft and the SST, and that appearance of rejection in the SST may precede rejection in the primary allograft, permitting early therapeutic intervention that may improve outcomes with lower rates of chronic rejection. The encouraging findings reported in VCA transplantation raise the possibility that SST may also be useful in solid organ transplantation. Some evidence is provided by experience with abdominal wall transplantation in some intestinal and multivisceral transplant recipients. Results from those reports raise the possibility that rejection may manifest in the skin component before emergence in the intestinal allograft, providing a “lead time” during which treatment of rejection of the abdominal wall could prevent the emergence of intestinal rejection. It is plausible that these findings may be extrapolated to other solid organ allografts, especially those for which obtaining an accurate diagnosis of acute rejection can be hazardous and challenging, such as the lung or pancreas. However, more data are required to support widespread adoption of this technique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]