Pectoralis Major Myocutaneous Flap Reconstruction with Deltopectoral Flap Incision in the Surgical Treatment of Oral Cancer

One of the main goals of patient management is the reconstruction of tissue defects following surgical resection for oral cancer. A variety of flaps are used for this purpose, the most frequent being a Pectoralis Major Myocutaneus Flap (PMMF). This flap is currently widely used for the reconstruction of different defects of the head and neck.  Surgical resection of the primary tumor, as well as neck dissection, was performed on 29 patients with oral squamos cell carcinoma between 2011–2017 in City Hospital #1 and Surgical Training Clinic of Azerbaijan Medical University. PMMF was used for the reconstruction of defects using a deltopectoral flap incision. In 22 patients (75.8 %) primary healing occurred following a PMMF. Four patients (13.8 %) suffered PMMF necrosis and were taken back to the operating room for secondary reconstruction with a deltopectoral flap. In three patients (10.3%) the skin of the flap underwent necrosis, resulting in the development of an orocutaneus fistula. Use of PMMF with deltopectoral flap incision enables deltopectoral flap availability. This flap can then be used early on or if PMMF fails.