MYOCUTANEOUS FLAP (V-Y DESIGN) FROM THE NASAL BRIDGE FOR MEDIAL CANTHAL RECONSTRUCTION

Repair of soft tissue loss of the medial canthal area is usually accom plished by using skin grafts or frontal flaps based on the glabellar v essels. However, skin grafts can provoke scar tissue contracture, or s kin color chromatic changes (hypopigmentation or hyperpigmentation). O n the other hand, frontal flaps are sometimes thicker than normal skin and lead to unsatisfactory aesthetic results. To avoid these disadvan tages, the authors designed an alternative method fur reconstruction o f defects of the medial canthal area. The authors suggest using a myoc utaneous flap (V-Y design) from the nasal bridge to repair soft tissue defects no larger than 2 cm in diameter (surface <4 cm(2)) in the med ial canthal area. The pedicle of this flap is based on supratrochlear and dorsal nasal vessels. This technique has proved safe and reliable and has led to good functional and cosmetic results.