The nuances of abdominal free flap harvest: Technical and patient factors affecting abdominal donor site morbidity in autologous breast reconstruction

Abstract

Abdominal donor site morbidity after autologous breast reconstruction is common and often underreported. This work aims to compare prospectively collected technical details of the procedure and patient factors and their impact on the development of symptomatic and asymptomatic abdominal bulges (ASB and SB). A review of patients undergoing abdominal-based autologous breast reconstruction from May 2012 to October 2017 by two surgeons at a single institution was performed. Demographics, prior medical and surgical history, intraoperative data, and postoperative course were collected. Primary outcomes of interest were ASB or SB and wound healing complications. Overall, 196 free flaps from 117 patients were included. The average follow-up was 1.9±1.7 years. Thirteen (11.1%) patients developed ASB, and 13 (11.1%) patients developed SB. Patients with BMI ≥30, bilateral ms-TRAM reconstruction, and an onlay type of abdominal closure were 2×, 2.3×, and 8.1× more likely to develop a bulge, respectively (p=0.017, p=0.010, p=0.049). Every one-point increase in BMI above 30 increased the odds of developing a bulge by 10.8%. Prior abdominal surgery increased the risk of SB by 7-fold (p=0.017). The size of the harvested muscle, use of mesh, or nerve preservation did not affect the rate of bulge development. High BMI, bilateral ms-TRAM, onlay type of abdominal closure, and prior abdominal surgery increase the risk of ASB and SB development to varying degrees, while several other operative variables did not seem to make a difference. Breast reconstruction patients can use this information for preoperative counseling and intraoperative decision-making.