Evolution of anatomical studies on the arterial, venous, and lymphatic system in plastic surgery

Soo Jin Woo, Hee Tae Koo, Seong Oh Park, Hiroo Suami, Hak Chang*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)
26 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Anatomies of the vascular and lymphatic systems have been vital research topics in reconstructive surgery. Harvey was a pioneer who provided the earliest descriptions of the cutaneous vasculature in the 17th century. The concept of vascular territories of the skin was first described by Manchot. The radiographic injection method in cadavers was developed by Salman, who defined more than 80 vascular territories. The arterial system has been thoroughly investigated with the development of regional and free flaps. The concept of axial and random pattern flaps was introduced by McGregor and Morgan. Manchot's vascular territories were refined by Taylor and Palmer as the angiosome concept. Detailed information about the venous circulation is essential for reconstructive surgeries. The concept of intrinsic and extrinsic venocutaneous vascular systems was introduced by Nakajima and led to the development of the venoadipofascial flap. The importance of venous augmentation in flap survival was emphasized by Chang. The lymphatic system was discovered much later than the arterial and venous systems. Aselli was credited for discovering the lacteal vessels in the 17th century; mercury was popularly used as a contrast agent to distinguish lymphatic vessels for the next three centuries. A radiographic method in cadavers was developed by Suami. Lymphatic imaging devices are constantly upgrading, and photoacoustic imaging was recently introduced for three-dimensional visualization of architecture of superficial layers of the lymphatic and venous systems.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)773-781
Number of pages9
JournalArchives of Plastic Surgery
Volume49
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 13 Dec 2022

Bibliographical note

Copyright the Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons 2022. Version archived for private and non-commercial use with the permission of the author/s and according to publisher conditions. For further rights please contact the publisher.

Keywords

  • flap
  • lymphatic system
  • reconstructive surgery
  • vascular system

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