The role of the plastic surgeon in wound care. 2023

Richard Simman, and Fuad-Tahsin Abbas, and Darren Gordon
Jobst Vascular Institute, ProMedica Health Network, Toledo, OH; University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences, Department of Surgery, Division of Plastic Surgery, Toledo, OH.

Wound healing is multifactorial and requires careful management. Plastic surgeons have an important role in optimizing healing of various wound types, including large wounds; wounds in sensitive areas (eg, face, hands, feet); wounds with exposed vessels, nerves, and bone; and wounds for which SOC is unsuccessful; as well as in the use of advanced biologics. It is important for the primary care physician and ancillary health care team to understand timing and basic wound healing principles to know when to consult a plastic surgeon to optimize wound healing for possible flap or skin graft closure. This literature review discusses principles of wound management as they relate to referral from primary care providers to specialists in plastic surgery and transitions of care, along with indications that warrant plastic surgery consultation and underscore the importance of interdisciplinary communication, understanding, and cooperation in wound management. Careful attention to fundamentals, including nutritional status, wound debridement, and comorbidities, combined with a strong understanding of the aforementioned indications that warrant the involvement of a plastic and reconstructive surgeon, can result in efficient, rapid wound healing at relatively minimal cost.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D003646 Debridement The removal of foreign material and devitalized or contaminated tissue from or adjacent to a traumatic or infected lesion until surrounding healthy tissue is exposed. (Dorland, 27th ed) Debridements
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D013524 Surgical Flaps Tongues of skin and subcutaneous tissue, sometimes including muscle, cut away from the underlying parts but often still attached at one end. They retain their own microvasculature which is also transferred to the new site. They are often used in plastic surgery for filling a defect in a neighboring region. Island Flap,Island Flaps,Flap, Surgical,Flaps, Surgical,Pedicled Flap,Surgical Flap,Flap, Island,Flap, Pedicled,Flaps, Island,Flaps, Pedicled,Pedicled Flaps
D014945 Wound Healing Restoration of integrity to traumatized tissue. Healing, Wound,Healings, Wound,Wound Healings
D019651 Plastic Surgery Procedures Procedures used to reconstruct, restore, or improve defective, damaged, or missing structures. Cosmetic Reconstructive Surgical Procedures,Cosmetic Surgical Procedures,Esthetic Reconstructive Surgical Procedures,Esthetic Surgical Procedures,Plastic Surgical Procedures,Reconstructive Surgical Procedures,Reconstructive Surgical Procedures, Cosmetic,Cosmetic Reconstructive Surgery,Procedure, Reconstructive Surgical,Procedures, Reconstructive Surgical,Reconstructive Surgical Procedure,Reconstructive Surgical Procedures, Esthetic,Surgical Procedure, Reconstructive,Surgical Procedures, Reconstructive,Cosmetic Reconstructive Surgeries,Cosmetic Surgical Procedure,Esthetic Surgical Procedure,Plastic Surgery Procedure,Plastic Surgical Procedure,Procedure, Cosmetic Surgical,Procedure, Esthetic Surgical,Procedure, Plastic Surgery,Procedure, Plastic Surgical,Procedures, Cosmetic Surgical,Procedures, Esthetic Surgical,Procedures, Plastic Surgery,Procedures, Plastic Surgical,Reconstructive Surgeries, Cosmetic,Reconstructive Surgery, Cosmetic,Surgeries, Cosmetic Reconstructive,Surgery Procedure, Plastic,Surgery Procedures, Plastic,Surgery, Cosmetic Reconstructive,Surgical Procedure, Cosmetic,Surgical Procedure, Esthetic,Surgical Procedure, Plastic,Surgical Procedures, Cosmetic,Surgical Procedures, Esthetic,Surgical Procedures, Plastic
D066231 Surgeons Medical practitioners qualified to practice surgery.

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