Uses innovative microsurgical techniques to produce
natural-looking results.
Uses innovative microsurgical techniques to produce
natural-looking results.
The tissue of the upper thigh is particularly soft and can be sculpted into a natural-looking smaller breast. Thigh flaps result in less contour distortion than buttock flaps. Thigh flaps, also known as TUG/VUG/DUG flaps, are made from the fat, skin, and occasionally a small amount of muscle from the upper thigh. PAP flaps are another type of thigh flap. They spare muscle and contain only skin and fat.
Your surgeon may perform noninvasive imaging of the upper thigh before your procedure. This will help to determine the type of thigh flap that’s best for you. Imaging can show which of your blood vessels are healthiest and will be the most useful in a thigh flap.
The TUG (transverse upper gracilis), VUG (vertical upper gracilis), and DUG (diagonal upper gracilis) flaps are all based on the gracilis muscle, a very small muscle in the upper thigh. This muscle contains the blood vessels that will be used to supply blood to the new breast. The gracilis muscle is removed, along with fat and skin, as part of the flap during the TUG/VUG/DUG procedures. Although these aren’t considered muscle-sparing procedures, most women don’t notice the loss of the gracilis muscle.
The PAP (profunda artery perforator) flap is an advanced microsurgical technique that uses the upper inner and back of the thigh to create the new breast. No muscle is taken from the thigh. The new breast’s blood supply is provided by perforator vessels of the upper thigh, which are removed as part of the PAP flap.
All thigh flaps are free-flap procedures: The tissue flap is completely separated from the thigh and transplanted to the chest. The tiny blood vessels in the flap are attached to similar vessels in the chest using microsurgery. The flap is then shaped into the new breast.
The usual hospital stay for a thigh flap procedure is 1-3 days. You’ll be able to return to most activities after 6 weeks. It can take up a year for your tissue to completely heal.
Expect soreness, swelling, and bruising at all surgery sites, including the thigh. You might experience some loss of sensation, which is often temporary at the donor tissue site.
The location of your scar depends on which thigh flap procedure you have.
The thigh incision for the TUG flap procedure runs sideways just under the groin crease.
The thigh incision for the VUG flap procedures runs vertically along the inner thigh.
The thigh incision for the DUG flap procedure runs diagonally along the inner thigh.
The thigh incision for the PAP flap procedure runs along the groin just below the crease of the lower buttock.
Scars typically fade over 12-18 months. Your breast scars will largely depend on the type of mastectomy you end up having.
You may not be a candidate for a thigh flap procedure if there isn’t enough fat tissue in your upper thigh or if previous surgery has damaged blood vessels in that area.
Alternative donor tissue sites include the abdomen, buttock, upper back, and lumbar (lower back) region. If very little fat tissue is available at any donor site, you may consider a stacked flap procedure or hybrid reconstruction.
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