Flaps, slings, and other things: CT after reconstructive surgery--expected changes and detection of complications.

Abstract

This article will discuss the typical CT appearance of myocutaneous surgically placed flaps as well as some frequently encountered complications of this surgery. We will discuss the appearance of relatively new, but increasingly encountered, nonnative materials used in reconstructive surgery, such as spacers, bulking agents, hemostatic agents, and other reconstructive materials. Oncologic surgery often requires reconstruction using myocutaneous flaps. Therefore, an understanding of the type of reconstruction performed is important for the accuracy of postoperative radiologic interpretation to recognize presence of a flap to avoid misdiagnosis of tumor recurrence.