Finder-I for Locating Anterolateral Thigh Perforators in Head and Neck Reconstruction: A Diagnostic Study.

Abstract

The localization of perforators in the anterolateral thigh (ALT) flap is important for flap survival. This study aimed to provide surgeons with a more effective instrument, Finder-I, for the perforator locations of ALT flaps. Eighty-two patients who underwent head and neck reconstruction were recruited from June 2023 to February 2024. All patients underwent preoperative computed tomography angiography (CTA) and Ultrasonic color Doppler (UCD) to detect and mark perforator locations. The CTA data were transformed into spatial coordinates using the Finder-I device, and the accuracy of perforator localization was compared between Finder-I and UCD. Finder-I demonstrated higher sensitivity (95.7% vs. 82.8%, p = 0.012) and accuracy [the area under the curve (AUC) 0.86 vs. 0.70, p = 0.001] in perforator localization compared to UCD. Using Finder-I to convert CTA data into spatial coordinates, accurately localizes the ALT flap perforators and demonstrating superiority over UCD in perforator localization.