Skin-fold advancement flaps for closing large proximal limb and trunk defects in dogs and cats.

Objective: To describe the use of skin-fold advancement flaps for covering large skin defects in dogs and cats.
Study Design: Clinical study.
Animals: Eight client-owned animals: 6 dogs and 2 cats.
Methods: Six dogs and 2 cats underwent reconstruction of soft-tissue wounds resulting from traumatic, neoplastic, or infectious lesions. Skin-fold flaps were created by division of the medial and lateral attachment to the proximal limb or the dorsal and ventral attachment to the trunk, enabling closure of adjacent defects on the trunk or proximal limb, respectively.
Results: Skin-fold flaps proved effective for closing defects in all animals. Necrosis of a portion of the flap occurred in 2 dogs due to technical errors, but the resultant defects remained amenable to primary closure. All wounds ultimately healed primarily, without major complications.
Conclusion and Clinical Relevance: The skin-fold advancement flap is a versatile technique that lends itself to use in a variety of locations, depending on which attachments are divided. The clinical results are comparable with those reported for axial pattern and subdermal plexus flaps.
(Copyright 2001 by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons)