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Introduction: Masculinizing chest-wall contouring surgery is an important surgical intervention for most transmasculine patients; a vast improvement in quality of life for this group of patients has been documented as a result of receiving surgery. The aim of this study was to evaluate the results of such surgeries performed at our university hospital between 2008 and 2020, as well as the current quality of life of the patients., Methods: All 16 patients operated between 2008 and 2020 were sent a questionnaire consisting of both BREAST-Q and BODY-Q modules, considered fitting for our study purposes, as well as the BECK Depression Index and a short two-question form with space for feedback. Patients were divided into groups called double incision (DI) and periareolar (PA) depending on the surgical technique used., Results: We found an overall complication percentage of 31.3%, with the DI group scoring 33.3% and PA 28.6%, while secondary aesthetic corrections were necessary for 50% of all patients. The questionnaires yielded 6 responses (37.5%). Participants rated on a scale of 1 to 10 their willingness to undergo the operation again if given the choice; the DI group averaged 10/10, and the PA group 9/10, despite the statistically significant complication and correction rates., Conclusions: Masculinizing chest-wall contouring surgery has significant complication risks. In our study, frequency of complications did not appear to depend on the surgical technique used. Additionally, the complication rates found in our low volume centre seem to be comparable with those reported from bigger units., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS.. All rights reserved.)

Pilonidal sinus disease (PSD) is a common condition that typically affects young adults. PSD may cause significant morbidity due to its chronic nature and tendency to recur. Laser ablation has recently shown promising results in the treatment of PSD, but comparative studies are sparse. We aimed to compare laser ablation with two conventional treatment options: simple excision with direct closure and excision with flap reconstruction. This retrospective study material included patients who underwent PSD surgery in the plastic surgery department of a single academic teaching hospital. Patients were divided into three groups based on the operation technique: laser group, direct closure group, and flap group. Preoperative and postoperative data were compared between the groups including patient characteristics, residual disease, recurrent disease, complications, and re-operations. Among the 278 patients, 66 underwent laser treatment, 134 excision with direct closure, and 78 excision with flap closure. The follow-up time ranged from 15.4 ± 7.6 months in the laser group to 87.6 ± 29.3 months in the flap group. Eventless healing occurred in 67.7% of the patients in the laser group, 66.4% of the patients in the direct closure group, and 56.4% of the patients in the flap group. There was significantly more residual disease in the laser group whereas significantly more complications were found in the direct closure and flap groups. The advantages of laser treatment include fast postoperative recovery and reduced risk of complications., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background and Objective: Deep sternal wound infection is a feared complication of open-heart surgery. Negative pressure wound therapy has gained an important role in the treatment of deep sternal wound infection. Incisional negative pressure wound therapy has been introduced as a method to prevent wound complications after sternotomy, and lately, after flap reconstructions in the treatment of deep sternal wound infection. We aimed to study if incisional negative pressure wound therapy with PICO™ had similar beneficial effect described earlier with competing commercial devices., Methods: This study included 82 patients treated with pectoralis major muscle flap for deep sternal wound infection during the years 2006-2020. PICO group consisted of 24 patients treated with preoperative negative pressure wound therapy and postoperative incisional negative pressure wound therapy (PICO™). Two control groups included 48 patients with conventional treatment and 10 patients with preoperative negative pressure wound therapy only., Results: In the PICO group, the complication rate declined from 50.0% to 33.30%, major complication rate from 29.2% to 12.5%, and need for an additional flap from 14.6.% to 4.2% when compared to conventional treatment. The length of hospital stay decreased as well. Preoperative negative pressure wound therapy alone was associated with moderate decline in the complication rates. In addition, we described the use of split pectoralis major muscle flap reconstruction in 57 patients. To our knowledge, this is the largest published patient series describing this method in the treatment of deep sternal wound infection., Conclusions: Incisional negative pressure wound therapy with PICO™ seems beneficial after flap reconstruction. Split pectoralis major muscle flap is a versatile reconstruction option suitable to be used as a workhorse in the treatment of deep sternal wound infection.

Background:  Incisional negative pressure wound therapy has been described as an effective method to prevent wound infections after open heart surgery in several publications. However, most studies have examined relatively small patient groups, only a few were randomized, and some have manufacturer-sponsorship. Most of the studies have utilized Prevena; there are only a few reports describing the PICO incisional negative pressure wound therapy system., Methods:  We conducted a prospective cohort study involving a propensity score-matched analysis to evaluate the effect of PICO incisional negative pressure wound therapy after coronary artery bypass grafting. A total of 180 high-risk patients with obesity or diabetes were included in the study group. The control group included 772 high-risk patients operated before the initiation of the study protocol., Results:  The rates of deep sternal wound infections in the PICO group and in the control group were 3.9 and 3.1%, respectively. The rates of superficial wound infections needing operative treatment were 3.1 and 0.8%, respectively. After propensity score matching with two groups of 174 patients, the incidence of both deep and superficial infections remained slightly elevated in the PICO group. None of the infections were due to technical difficulties or early interruption of the treatment., Conclusion:  It seems that incisional negative pressure wound therapy with PICO is not effective in preventing wound infections after coronary artery bypass grafting. The main difference in this study compared with previous reports is the relatively low incidence of infections in our control group., Competing Interests: None declared., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Introduction . Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has widely become the first-line option in the treatment of deep sternal wound infections. After several positive reports in comparison with conventional treatment, very recent studies comparing NPWT with early reconstruction have favored the latter. Our aim was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of NPWT in comparison with early flap reconstruction. Materials and methods . We concluded a retrospective analysis of 125 patients with deep sternal wound infection treated in a single institution between the years 2006 and 2018. NPWT became the first-line treatment in our hospital in 2011. The study group consisted of 55 patients treated primarily with NPWT with or without subsequent flap reconstruction. The control group consisted of 60 patients treated with flap reconstruction without prior NPWT. Ten patients with an immediate re-fixation and direct wound closure were excluded. Results . There were no significant differences between the two groups concerning the type or urgency of the original open-heart surgery, age, gender, or co-morbidities. In the NPWT group there was significantly higher mortality ( p  = .002), longer stay in the intensive care unit ( p  = .028), and in the university hospital ( p  < .001) as well as higher number of operations ( p  < .001). However, there were somewhat more surgical complications in the control group as well as a higher number of distant flap reconstructions. Overall, five patients suffered from NPWT associated bleeding. Conclusion . Our results raise concerns about the wide use of NPWT as a first-line treatment of deep sternal wound infections. Further evaluative studies are warranted to confirm the results.