• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.466-469
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• 2016

External volume expansion of the recipient site by suction has been proposed as a way of improving fat graft survival. The objective of this study was to present an innovative and simple intraoperative external expansion system to enhance small-volume autologous fat grafting (40-80 mL) and to discuss its background and its mechanism of action. In this system, expansion is performed using a complete vacuum delivery system known as the Kiwi VAC-6000M with a PalmPump (Clinical Innovations). The recipient site is rapidly expanded intraoperatively 10 times for 30 seconds each with a negative pressure of up to 550 mm Hg before autologous fat injection. During this repetitive stimulation, the tissues become grossly expanded, developing macroscopic swelling that regresses slowly over the course of hours following the cessation of the stimulus. The system sets various mechanisms in motion, including scar release, mechanical stimulation, edema, ischemia, and inflammation, which provide an environment conducive for cell proliferation and angiogenesis. In order to maintain the graft construct in its expansive state, all patients are encouraged postoperatively to use the Kiwi three times daily for one minute per session over the course of three days. The handling of this system is simple for both the patients and the surgeon. Satisfactory clinical outcomes have been achieved without significant complications.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.39 no.6
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• pp.659-662
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• 2012

Progressive facial hemiatrophy, also known as Parry-Romberg syndrome, is a progressive and self-limited deformation of the subcutaneous tissue volume on one side of the face that creates craniofacial asymmetry. We present the case of a patient with a five-year history of progressive right facial hemiatrophy, who underwent facial volumetric restoration using cell-assisted lipotransfer (CAL), which consists of an autologous fat graft enriched with adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) extracted from the same patient. ASCs have the capacity to differentiate into adipocytes. They also promote angiogenesis, release angiogenic growth factors, and some can survive as stem cells. The use of autologous fat as a filler in soft tissue atrophy has been satisfactory in patients with mild and moderate Parry-Romberg syndrome. Currently, CAL has showed promising results in the long term by decreasing the rate of fat reabsorption. The permanence and stability of the graft in all the injected areas has showed that autologous fat grafts enriched with stem cells could be a promising technique for the correction of defects caused by this syndrome.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.113-117
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• 2005

Background and Objective : Vocal fold augmentation by injectable material under direct visual control is an easy and simple operation. However, when autologous fat or bovine collagen is used, the resoiption creates a problem. And autologous fascia is debating about absorption now days. We previously reported on the one year results of injected autologous auricular cartilage for volumetric augmentation in paralyzed canine vocal cord. This study evaluates the long-term histomorphologic results of injected autologous auricular cartilage for the augmentation of the paralyzed canine vocal fold at two year. Material and Methods . A prospective trial of autologous cartilage augmentation of vocal cord in animal model. Three dogs were operated upon. A piece of auricular cartilage was harvested from the ear and minced into tiny chips with a scalpel. Fat was harvested from inguinal area and minced with a scalpel. The minced cartilage and fat-paste (0.2ml) was injected using a pressure syringe into the paralyzed thyroarytenoid muscle using direct laryngoscopy. Three animals were sacrificed at 2 years. Each subject underwent laryngectomy and serial coronal sections of paraffin blocks from the posterior vocal fold were made. Results There was no significant complication perioperatively and during follow-up. The injected cartilage which appeared to have lost viability existed in the vocalis muscles until 24 months. Fibrotic change was exhibited in the surrounding injected cartilage. Conclusion : The autologous auricular cartilage graft is well tolerated and may be very effective material for volumetric augmentation on paralyzed vocal cord.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.241-247
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• 2014

Background Autologous fat grafts have been widely used for cosmetic purposes and for soft tissue contour reconstruction. Because diabetes mellitus is one of the major chronic diseases in nearly every country, the requirement for fat grafts in diabetes patients is expected to increase continuously. However, the circulation complications of diabetes are serious and have been shown to involve microvascular problems, impairing ischemia-driven neovascularization in particular. After injection, revascularization is vital to the survival of the grafted fat. In this study, the authors attempted to determine whether the diabetic condition inhibits the survival of injected fat due to impaired neovascularization. Methods The rat scalp was used for testing fat graft survival. Forty-four seven-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were allocated to a diabetic group or a control group. 1.0 mL of processed fat was injected subcutaneously into the scalp of each rat. The effect of diabetes was evaluated by calculating the volume and the weight of the grafted fat and by histologically analyzing the fat sections. Results The surviving fat graft volume and weight were considerably smaller in the diabetic group than in the control group (P<0.05), and histological evaluations showed less vascularity, and more cysts, vacuoles, and fibrosis in the diabetic group (P<0.05). Cellular integrity and inflammation were not considerably different in the two groups. Conclusions As the final outcome, we found that the presence of diabetes might impair the survival and the quality of fat grafts, as evidenced by lower fat graft weights and volumes and poor histologic graft quality.

• Proceedings of the KSLP Conference
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• 2003.11a
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• pp.181-181
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• 2003

Objectives : Vocal fold augmentation using injectable material is an easy and simple operation. This study is to evaluate the histology of minced and injected autologous auricular cartilage and fat graft in the augmentation of unilateral vocal fold paralysis using a canine model for two years. Study Design : A prospective study with the contralateral side of the larynx used as the control Methods : Twelve dogs were operated. At first, a piece of auricular cartilage was harvested from ear and minced into tiny chips with a scalpel and scissors. And also, a piece of fat tissue was harvested from inguinal area and minced into tiny chips with a scalpel and scissors. The minced cartilage and fat-paste (0.2ml) was injected using a pressure syringe into the paralyzed thyroarytenoid muscle under direct laryngoscopy. Two animals were sacrificed at 3 days, three at 3 weeks. two at 3 months. one at 6 months, one at 12 months, three at 24 months. Each dog underwent laryngectomy and serial coronal sections of paraffin blocks from the posterior part of the vocal fold were made. Result : There was no significant complication perioperatively and during follow-up. There was acute inflammatory findings in the graft at 3 days and 3 weeks. Only a very small proportion of the injected cartilage was absorbed due to the degenerative change and the overall volume was preserved even when the cells died out. The injected cartilage remained in the larynx until 24 months. Conclusion : The autologous cartilage implant using auricular cartilage was the ideal vocal cord augmentative material for the treatment of glottic incompetence.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.37 no.6
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• pp.726-731
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• 2010

Purpose: Autologous fat grafting is a popular procedure for the correction of the soft tissue depression and deformity. But there are several issues required to be carefully considered in relation to this procedure, mainly about the unpredictability and the low survival rate of the grafted fat due to absorption and partial necrosis. Sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) is a lysophospholipid mediator that has been proposed to promote angiogenesis and to regulate the differentiation of adipose derived stromal cells (ASCs). In this study, we analyzed the viability of the grafted fat tissue mixed with S1P into each 12 nude mice (cann.cg-fox1nu/crlori) compared to the group of mice grafted fat tissue only. Methods: Human aspirated fat was grafted subcutaneously into the backs of 8-week-old nude mice with or without S1P. Eight weeks later, the grafted fat was harvested and the weight and volume were checked. The fat was stained with hematoxylin-eosin and 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole. Results: S1P group weighed significantly more than the control group (p=0.009), and the volume from the S1P group was considerably larger than that of the control group (p=0.004) either. In histological features, the surviving layer of the S1P group was thicker than the control group and microvasculature appeared to be prominent in the S1P group, especially in the outer layers. Conclusion: These findings suggest that S1P plays a vital role in the soft tissue augmentation, potentially providing a novel point of the control in adipose tissue for microfat graft.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.44 no.5
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• pp.361-369
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• 2017

As the popularity of fat grafting research increases, animal models are being used as the source of pre-clinical experimental information for discovery and to enhance techniques. To date, animal models used in this research have not been compared to provide a standardized model. We analyzed publications from 1968-2015 to compare published accounts of animal models in fat grafting research. Data collected included: species used, graft characteristics (donor tissue, recipient area, amount injected, injection technique), time of sacrifice and quantification methods. Mice were most commonly used (56% of studies), with the "athymic nude" strain utilized most frequently (44%). Autologous fat was the most common source of grafted tissue (52%). Subcutaneous dorsum was the most common recipient site (51%). On average, $0.80{\pm}0.60mL$ of fat was grafted. A single bolus technique was used in 57% of studies. Fat volume assessment was typically completed at the end of the study, occurring at less than 1 week to one year. Graft volume was quantified by weight (63%), usually in conjunction with another analysis. The results demonstrate the current heterogeneity of animal models in this research. We propose that the research community reach a consensus to allow better comparison of techniques and results. One example is the model used in our laboratory and others; this model is described in detail. Eventually, larger animal models may better translate to the human condition but, given increased financial costs and animal facility capability, should be explored when data obtained from small animal studies is exhausted or inconclusive.

• Archives of Craniofacial Surgery
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.94-101
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• 2018

Background: Atrophy of muscle and fat often contributes to temporal hollowing after pterional craniotomy. However, the main cause is from the bony defect. Several methods to prevent temporal hollowing have been introduced, all with specific limitations. Autologous bone grafts are most ideal for cranial defect reconstruction. The authors investigated the effectiveness of bony defect coverage and temporal augmentation using pterional craniotomy bone flap. Methods: This study was conducted in 100 patients who underwent brain tumor excision through pterional approach from 2015 to 2016. Group 1 underwent pterional craniotomy with temporal augmentation and group 2 without temporal augmentation. In group 1, after splitting the calvarial bone at the diploic space, the inner table was used for covering the bone defect and as an onlay graft for temporal augmentation. The outcome is evaluated by computed tomography at 1-year follow-up. Results: The mean operative time for temporal augmentation was 45 minutes. The mean follow-up was 12 months. The ratio of temporal thickness of operated side to non-operated side was 0.99 in group 1 and 0.44 in group 2, which was statistically different. The mean visual analogue scale score was 1.77 in group 1 and 6.85 in group 2. Conclusion: This study demonstrated a surgical technique using autologous bone graft for successfully preventing the temporal hollowing and improved patient satisfaction.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.127-130
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• 2021

Rectovaginal fistula, which can arise after an injury to the vaginal canal or rectum, is a troublesome obstacle for patients' everyday life. In most cases, it can be covered with a local flap, but previous radiation therapy increases the recurrence rate, making it especially difficult to cure. As the application of stromal vascular fraction (SVF) obtained from enzymatically digested autologous adipose tissue has become increasingly common, several reports have advocated its effectiveness for the treatment of refractory wounds. In light of the angiogenic, regenerative characteristics of SVF, it was incorporated as a treatment option in two cases of rectovaginal fistula discussed here. As described in this report, irradiated rectovaginal fistulas in rectal cancer patients were successfully treated with SVF injection, and we suggest SVF as a feasible treatment option for cases of rectovaginal fistula that would otherwise be very difficult to cure.

• Archives of Plastic Surgery
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• v.38 no.4
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• pp.383-390
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• 2011

Purpose: To correct the upper lip depression after the correction of unilateral cleft lip, autologous grafts such as bone, dermal, fascial grafts and fat injections or alloplastic implants are used. Transplanted bones, dermis and fascia have a tendency to be absorbed and have donor morbidity. Fat injections are absorbed inconsistently and alloplastic implants have problems such as foreign body reactions, protrusions and infections. Authors corrected the upper lip depression using conchal cartilage graft in unilateral cleft lip deformity and the results was analysed with photos. Methods: 26-unilateral cleft lip and 2-microform cleft lip cases, totally 28 cases were performed. Their mean age was 21.89 years. The male and female cases were 12 and 16, respectively. Under anesthesia (general: 18 cases and local: 10 cases), cavum conchae (n=8), cymba conchae (n=16) and whole conchae (n=4) were harvested. Transversely cut the margin of the obtained cartilage, we cut out the most bent portion and put a partial-thickness incision on concave surface in cases of excessive convexity. Then, we performed the onlay graft of the conchal cartilage via scar revision site in unilateral cleft lip and via the reconstruction site of the cupid bow in microform cleft lip. The augmentation of the upper lip was evaluated with photos. Adapting the baseline connecting between the both cheilions as a horizontal standard line, we measured the highest point among the tangents between the upper lip and nose (point a), the lowest point (point c), the middle point between a and c (point b) and the vertical line from the alare (point d) to the horizontal standard line. To assess the postoperative symmetry, we compared cleft side upper lip contour index (%) A,B,C,D=(a,b,c,d)-ch ${\times}$ 100/(ch-ch) and non-cleft side upper lip contour index (%) A',B',C',D'= (a',b',c',d')-ch ${\times}$ 100 / (ch-ch).h) Results: After the surgery, no complication was found except in one case which double layers graft performed in the cleft lip deformity, the lateral portion was protruded. The upper lip contour index, the difference of A and A' were-0.83%, and thus the mild depression was persisted. Difference of B and B', C and C', D and D' were 0.83%, 1.07%, 0.90%. There were statistically significant difference, and thus the depression of upper lip were improved generally. Conclusion: Authors performed the onlay graft of the conchal cartilage in unilateral cleft lip deformity and found that the depression of the upper lip was well corrected except the uppermost part when photogrammetrically analyzed.