Scapular osteocutaneous free flap in the deferred treatment of firearm wounds.

Firearm wounds caused by high-velocity projectiles cause enormous losses of bone and soft tissue. The deferred treatment of these cases (delayed reconstruction) in most cases requires the transfer of free tissue from other areas of the body. The use of scapular and parascapular free flaps with scapular bone for the reconstruction of large lateral mandibular defects with extensive soft-tissue avulsion is reported. The technical details of a free flap are offered with illustrations in the case report of a 19-year-old male who was shot at close range in the lower third of the left lateral face. Avulsion of the left mandibular body and soft tissue occurred in the region from the cheek to the oral commissure. The initial treatment was tracheostomy, cleaning of necrotic and devitalized tissues, wiring of a mandible-to-maxilla arch bar and intermaxillary fixation, rigid fixation with a reconstructive mandibular plate, and a regional cervical flap to close the skin wound. The cervical flap was lost and a postoperative oral-cervical fistula appeared. Scar contraction limited the mouth opening to 0.8 cm. In deferred treatment, a scapular and parascapular free flap with scapular bone from the left shoulder was used to reconstruct the mandibular and intraoral-facial soft-tissue defects. The aesthetic and functional results were optimal. Some complications occurred: postoperative salivary fistula, deinsertion of the long head of the brachial triceps, and scapular wound dehiscence, which will be closed surgically with a local flap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]