Reconstruction of nasal supratip defect using vertical alar groove tissue

Abstract

Background: Several local flaps have been introduced for the reconstruction of small-to-medium-sized nasal supratip defects. Objective: To evaluate the outcome of reconstructing supratip defects using tangential advancement flaps from the vertical alar groove tissue. Methods and materials: Medical records of 20 patients who underwent supratip reconstruction using this flap between January 2012 and July 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. The postoperative photographs were assessed by three dermatologists using a four-scale investigator’s global assessment. Results: The male-to-female ratio was 9:11, with a mean age of 72.6 years (range, 56–89 years). In all 20 cases, defects were caused by a wide local excision of non-melanoma skin cancer on the nose. The mean diameter of the defects was 1.20 cm (ranging from 0.5 to 1.9 cm). The mean follow-up period was 14.0 months (ranging from 0.5 to 48 months). Excellent or good surgical outcome was reported in 95% of patients. Conclusions: Creating a tangential advancement flap using the vertical alar groove tissue is a simple, single-stage procedure with excellent surgical outcome. It may be useful in the reconstruction of supratip defects with a diameter of less than 2 cm.

Keywords

• tangential advancement flap
• nasal reconstruction
• non-melanoma skin cancer
• alar groove
• supratip