The proximal vastus lateralis flap: an anatomical and radiological study

Introduction: Soft-tissue reconstruction following acetabular or proximal femur resection for bone tumours is challenging. The vastus lateralis flap has been proposed as an advancement or rotational flap to cover soft-tissue defects for such locoregional indications. We performed an anatomical and a radiological study to assess the vascularisation of the proximal vastus lateralis muscle achieved through the transverse branch of the lateral circumflex femoral artery in order to decrease the morbidity of the classical flap retrieval technique.