Applied Anatomy of the Anterolateral Femoral Flap

Abstract

A study of the source of the blood supply to the anterolateral femoral flap was carried out on 42 lower limbs of adult cadavers (among them 35 cadavers with injection of red latex and 1 with india ink into the arteries and 6 vascular cast specimens), and the surface locations of the vascular pedicle were detected on 50 healthy adults. It was found that the descending branch of the lateral circumflex femoral vessel was an ideal axial vessel. There are constant perforating branches of the myocutaneous artery or cutaneous branches from the intermuscular space to the anterolateral femoral skin. The area extends about 12 X 30 cm. Within the flap, the anterior branch of the anterolateral cutaneous nerve of the thigh is located. This flap has been widely used for free transplantation in China since 1983 with satisfactory results.