Beyond Alar Base Resection: Contouring of the Alar Rim and Base

SUMMARY

Alar base surgery is approached with hesitancy and is often avoided by many surgeons because of inexperience and a lack of understanding. However, with a thorough knowledge of the anatomy and dynamic nature of the lower third of the nose, alar base resection can achieve favorable and reproducible results. Beyond correcting alar flare, an appropriately diagnosed and performed alar base procedure serves to contour both the alar rim and the alar base. The following article presents a case series of 436 consecutive rhinoplasties from a single surgeon, 214 of which underwent alar base surgery. The outcomes demonstrate that the procedure is safe and yields desirable results without a single revision being required. As the third in a series of three articles on alar base surgery by the senior author (R.J.R.), this article unifies the management of the alar base. An intuitive approach to the classification and management of alar flare and the implications of alar base surgery on contouring of the alar base and alar rim is presented.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Therapeutic, IV.

Opioid Prescribing Habits and Pain Management Among Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons

BACKGROUND

The opioid epidemic continues to worsen in the USA. Post-operative opioid prescriptions contribute to development of opioid use disorders, with studies showing 6% of plastic surgery patients developing new persistent use. Prescribing by surgeons is often excessive, and plastic surgery patients only consume about half of their opioid prescriptions. To date, most studies that investigate post-operative opioid prescribing rely on examining patterns of opioid fills after surgery using administrative claims data, which exclude the overwhelming majority of aesthetic surgeries. The purpose of this study is to investigate opioid prescribing habits amongst aesthetic plastic surgeons.

METHODS

A 20-items survey were sent out to the Aesthetic Society. The survey focussed on general pain management techniques, as well as specific opioid prescribing patterns for several common aesthetic surgeries.

RESULTS

A total of 291 completed surveys were returned. Respondents were asked about opioid prescribing patterns for several common aesthetic surgeries. Surgeons were most likely to prescribe opioids for post-operative pain control for abdominoplasty (91%). Opioids were least likely to be prescribed for blepharoplasty (58%). For studied surgeries, the number of pills prescribed ranged from 2 to 120 pills per procedure. 45% of respondents reported being concerned that the opioid prescriptions they provide contribute to the development of an opioid use disorder.

CONCLUSIONS

Aesthetic plastic surgeons vary widely in their opioid prescribing. Additionally, a significant number are concerned that prescriptions they provide contribute to development of opioid use disorders. This study demonstrates the need to work towards optimizing and standardizing pain management techniques in aesthetic patients.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE V

This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 .

Quantitative anatomy of primary ossification centres of the lateral and basilar parts of the occipital bone in the human foetus

BACKGROUND

Computed tomography (CT)-based quantitative analysis of primary ossification centres in the cranium has not been carried out to date due to the limited availability of the foetal human material. Detailed morphometric data about the development of primary ossification centres in human foetuses may be useful in the early detection of developmental defects. Understanding the growth and development of the occipital bone is crucial in assessing the normal and pathological development of the cranial base, and the cranium as a whole.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

The study material comprised 37 human foetuses (16 males and 21 females) aged 18-30 weeks of gestation. Using CT, digital image analysis software, three-dimensional reconstruction and statistical methods, the size of the primary ossification centres of the lateral and basilar parts of the occipital bone was evaluated.

RESULTS

The morphometric characteristics of primary ossification centres of the lateral and basilar parts of the occipital bone display neither sex nor laterality differences. These ossification centres grow linearly with respect to their sagittal and transverse diameters, projection surface area and volume.

CONCLUSIONS

The obtained morphometric data of primary ossification centres in the lateral and basilar parts of the occipital bone may be considered as normative for their respective prenatal weeks and may contribute to the estimation of gestational ages and the diagnostics of congenital defects.

Perception of Risk Among Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons

BACKGROUND

With continuous innovation in plastic surgery, new procedures are constantly being introduced. A number of these procedures are generally safe but have the potential for rare yet serious complications. Many surgeons steer clear of these procedures due to safety concerns.

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this paper was to survey the membership of The Aesthetic Society to elicit perception of risk of several novel or less mainstream procedures.

METHODS

A 24-item survey was sent out to members of The Aesthetic Society. The survey focused on surgeon experience and attitude towards 3 procedures: filler rhinoplasty, gluteal augmentation with fat grafting, and submandibular gland excision.

RESULTS

In total, 189 completed surveys were returned. Of the responders, 50%, 49%, and 89% of surgeons said they do not perform filler rhinoplasty, gluteal augmentation with fat grafting, or submandibular gland excision in their practices, respectively. The majority of those who do not perform the procedures selected "danger to the patient" as the primary concern for each of the 3 procedures. Surgeons overwhelmingly reported not learning these procedures in training. Additionally, surgeons perceive the risks of more common procedures such as abdominoplasty and breast augmentation-mastopexy to be significantly lower and more acceptable than those of the studied procedures.

CONCLUSIONS

When comparing the perceived complication rates with data published in the literature, particularly when looking at rates of serious or life-threatening complications, plastic surgeons overestimate the risks of procedures with which they are less familiar. This perception of risk, accompanied by the lack of exposure to novel techniques in training, may contribute to surgeons avoiding these procedures.

Heterotopic Ossification: A Comprehensive Review

Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a diverse pathologic process, defined as the formation of extraskeletal bone in muscle and soft tissues. HO can be conceptualized as a tissue repair process gone awry and is a common complication of trauma and surgery. This comprehensive review seeks to synthesize the clinical, pathoetiologic, and basic biologic features of HO, including nongenetic and genetic forms. First, the clinical features, radiographic appearance, histopathologic diagnosis, and current methods of treatment are discussed. Next, current concepts regarding the mechanistic bases for HO are discussed, including the putative cell types responsible for HO formation, the inflammatory milieu and other prerequisite “niche” factors for HO initiation and propagation, and currently available animal models for the study of HO of this common and potentially devastating condition. © 2019 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Role of anatomical region and hypoxia on angiogenic markers in adipose-derived stromal cells

BACKGROUND

Recent research into adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) suggests that anatomical location has a major impact on the metabolic profile and differentiation capacity of ASCs. By having a better understanding of how various ASCs respond to cellular stressors such as hypoxia, which are induced during routine surgical procedures, we can facilitate future development of cell-based therapies to improve wound healing.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Human ASCs were isolated from the superficial and deep adipose layers of four patients undergoing elective abdominoplasty. ASCs were cultured in hypoxic (1% O2, 5% CO2, and 94% N2) conditions. After 12 and 48 hours, ASCs were assessed for markers of angiogenesis by mRNA levels of vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), vascular endothelial growth factor B (VEGF-B), and hypoxia inducible factor 1 α (HIF-1α). Western blot analysis was performed to assess levels of VEGF-A, p-NF-κB, and NF-κB. In addition, in vitro analysis of angiogenesis was performed using Matrigel assay (BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ).

RESULTS

We observed significant increases in deep ASC's VEGF-A, VEGF-B, and HIF-1α mRNA expression compared with the superficial layer after 24-hour hypoxia (p < 0.05). Similar results were found when examining protein expression levels, with the deep ASCs expressing significantly larger amounts of VEGF-A and p-NF-κB (p < 0.05) compared with the superficial layer.

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that significant variations exist in the angiogenic profile of superficial and deep ASCs. We demonstrate that superficial ASCs are less prone to transcribe potent chemokines for angiogenesis, such as VEGF-A, VEGF-B, and HIF-1α and are less likely to translate VEGF-A and NF-κB. This may help with the selection of specific stem cell donor sites in future models for stem cell therapy.

Abdominal wall dynamics after component separation hernia repair

BACKGROUND

The component separation technique (CST) is an important technique now used frequently in complex ventral hernia repair (VHR). Although this technique has demonstrated superior success rates, there is a paucity of research describing how release of the external obliques coupled with rectus myofascial advancement alters the morphology of the abdominal architecture. In this study, we apply the new concept of analytic morphomics to describe the immediate changes in morphology of the abdomen that take place after VHR by CST.

METHODS

We identified 21 patients who underwent VHR by CST and received both preoperative and postoperative computed tomography scans between 2004 and 2009 in our clinical database. The surgical technique involved incisional release of the external oblique muscle lateral to the linea semilunaris with rectus abdominis myofascial advancement in all patients. Using semiautomated morphomic analysis, we measured the pre- and post-operative dimensions of the abdominal wall including the anterior-posterior distance from the anterior vertebra-to-skin and fascia along with the circumferential area of the skin and fascial compartments. Paired Student t-tests were used to compare pre- and post-operative values.

RESULTS

After hernia repair, there was a decrease in the anterior vertebra-to-skin distance (16.6 cm-15.8 cm, P = 0.007). There were also decreases in total body area (968.0 cm(2)-928.6 cm(2), P = 0.017) and total body circumference (113.6 cm-111.4 cm, P = 0.016). The distance from fascia to skin decreased as well, almost to the point of statistical significance (3.3 cm-2.9 cm, P = 0.0505). Interestingly, fascia area and circumference did not decrease significantly after the operation (578.2 cm(2)-572.5 cm(2), P = 0.519, and 89.1 cm-88.6 cm, P = 0.394, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

Morphomic analysis can be used to compare and pre- and post-operative changes in patients undergoing abdominal surgery. Our study demonstrates that component separation affects the dimensions of the entire abdomen, but leaves the fascia area and circumference relatively unchanged. These changes in the abdominal wall may help explain the muscular changes observed as a result of this operation and demonstrate that this is a functional operation that restores fascial area. By better defining the effects of this procedure, we can better understand the reason for its clinical success.

Cross-sectional area of the abdomen predicts complication incidence in patients undergoing sternal reconstruction

BACKGROUND

Sternal reconstruction with vascularized flaps is central to the management of sternal wound infections and mediastinitis but carries a high risk of complications. There is a need to identify reliable predictors of complication risk to help inform patients and clinicians in preparation for surgery. Unfortunately, body mass index and serum albumin may not be reliable predictors of complication rates. Analytic morphomics provides a robust quantitative method to measure patients' obesity as it pertains to their risk of complications in undergoing sternal reconstruction.

METHODS

We identified 34 patients with preoperative computed tomography scans of the abdomen from a cohort of sternal reconstructions performed between 1997 and 2010. Using semiautomated analytic morphomics, we identified the patients' skin and fascia layers between the ninth and 12th thoracic spine levels; from these landmarks, we calculated morphomic measurements of the patients' abdomens, including their total body cross sectional area and the cross sectional area of their subcutaneous fat. We obtained the incidence of complications from chart review and correlated the incidence of complications (including seroma, hematoma, recurrent wounds, mediastinitis, tracheostomy, and death) with patients' morphomic measurements.

RESULTS

Sixty-two percent of patients (n = 21) suffered complications after their operation. Those who suffered from complications, relative to those who did not have complications, had increased visceral fat area (12,547.2 mm(2)versus 6569.9 mm(2), P = 0.0080), subcutaneous fat area (16,520.2 mm(2)versus 8020.1 mm(2), P = 0.0036), total body area (91,028.6 mm(2)versus 67,506.5 mm(2), P = 0.0022), fascia area (69,238.4 mm(2)versus 56,730.9 mm(2), P = 0.0118), total body circumference (1101.8 mm versus 950.2 mm, P = 0.0017), and fascia circumference (967.5 mm versus 868.1 mm, P = 0.0077). We also demonstrated a significant positive correlation between the previously mentioned morphomic measurements and the incidence of complications in multivariate logistic regression models, with odds ratios ranging from 1.19-3.10 (P values ranging from 0.010-0.022).

CONCLUSIONS

Increases in abdominal morphomic measurements correlate strongly with the incidence of complications in patients undergoing sternal reconstruction. This finding may influence preoperative risk stratification and surgical decision making in this patient population.

Temporalis muscle morphomics: the psoas of the craniofacial skeleton

BACKGROUND

The psoas muscle has been shown to predict patient outcomes based on the quantification of muscle area using computed tomography (CT) scans. The accuracy of morphomic analysis on other muscles has not been clearly delineated. In this study, we determine the correlation between temporalis muscle mass, psoas muscle area, age, body mass index (BMI), and gender.

METHODS

Temporalis and psoas muscle dimensions were determined on all trauma patients who had both abdominal and maxillofacial CT scans at the University of Michigan between 2004 and 2011. Age, BMI, and gender were obtained through chart review. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to determine the relative relationship between morphomic data of the temporalis and psoas muscles and the ability of such information to correspond with clinical variables, such as BMI, age, and gender.

RESULTS

A total of 646 patients were included in the present study. Among the 249 (38.5%) women and 397 (61.5%) men, the average age was 49.2 y. Average BMI was 27.9 kg/m². Total psoas muscle area directly correlated with mean temporalis muscle thickness (r = 0.57, P < 0.001). There was an indirect correlation between age and psoas muscle area (r = -0.52, P < 0.001) and temporalis muscle thickness (r = -0.36, P < 0.001). Neither psoas nor temporalis measurements correlated strongly with BMI (r = 0.18, P < 0.001; r = 0.14, P = 0.002), although stronger correlations were found in a more "frail," subgroup as defined by a BMI of <20 (r = 0.59, P = 0.002).

CONCLUSIONS

We demonstrate that dimensions of the temporalis muscle can be quantified and may serve as a proxy for age. Going forward, we aim to assess the utility of temporalis and psoas morphomics in predicting complication rates among trauma patients admitted to the hospital to predict outcomes in the future.