Temporary closure of full-thickness abdominal-wall defects with mesh grafts.

Abstract

A simple technique is presented here for temporarily covering massive, full-thickness, abdominal-wall defects, when they cannot be closed directly. The exposed viscera can be covered with a meshed split-thickness skin graft to close the wound and seal off the abdominal cavity from the outside. Once the patient's general condition improves, the epidermal layer of the mesh graft should be removed by dermabrasion to minimize the risk of epidermal cysts, and the defect should be closed either by primary closure or by a local or free flap, depending on the defect size.