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Larry D. Hartzell, MD; Brendan C. Stack Jr, MD; James Yuen, MD; Emre Vural, MD; James Y. Suen, MD

Arch Facial Plast Surg. 2009;11(3):171-177.

Objective  To evaluate free tissue transfer (FTT) as a safe and effective reconstructive technique to treat arteriovenous malformations. Vascular lesions that present a significant clinical challenge to the head and neck reconstructive surgeon are often difficult to treat and can leave large, complex defects.

Methods  Retrospective, single-institution case series.

Results  We describe 8 patients treated for extensive lesions in various parts of the head and neck reconstructed with free flaps. These malformations have a tendency to recur, which was the case in 75% of our patients (6 of 8) during a mean follow-up period of 5 years. Revision procedures are expected at a mean rate of 6.75 per person in our series.

Conclusions  Arteriovenous malformations are uncommon and challenging lesions. Use of FTT can ameliorate the large defects resulting from excision of these lesions.

Author Affiliations: Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery (Drs Hartzell, Stack, Vural, and Suen), Division of Plastic Surgery (Dr Yuen), University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock.

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