Are prostaglandins or calcium channel blockers efficient for free flap salvage? A review of the literature

Abstract

The free flap failure rate is less than 5%. The responsible mechanisms of postoperative secondary ischemia are mostly vascular. The main postoperative complication leading to flap failure is thrombosis. Different strategies have been reported to improve the reliability of flaps and decrease the risk of partial or total necrosis: thus, pharmacologic agents have been studied to reduce the risk of microvascular thrombosis. The aim of this review was to evaluate the effect of calcium channel blockers and prostaglandins on free skin flap survival. A systematic review of the literature was performed to identify articles studying the efficacy of calcium channel blockers and prostaglandins on free flap survival. After full text reading, eleven articles were finally included. Eight articles investigated the role of prostaglandins in free tissue transfers, two in rats subjects, one in rabbits, five in humans. Two articles studied the effect of calcium channel blockers on free flaps, one in rats subjects, one in rabbits. One article studied in different groups the effect of calcium channel blockers and prostaglandins on free flaps in rabbits. Literature regarding the efficacy of calcium channel blockers and prostaglandins to salvage free flap is poor and mainly based on animal models. Nevertheless, studies on prostaglandins showed a slight efficiency of these molecules for free flap salvage. Results are less reliable for calcium channel blockers and dependent on the molecule used. In conclusion, there is a lack of evidence to use them in clinical practice.