IPSI vs CONTRA TRAM—Old Doubts New Answers: Evaluation TRAM Flap Survival with Static and Active Dynamic Thermography in Pedicled Flap Breast Reconstruction

Breast reconstruction is increasingly being considered as the next step in breast cancer treatment. There are many ways to recreate a new breast mound. In current times, the trend for breast reconstruction is reconstruction microsurgery which is the method of choice, but newcomers should know the alternative traditional methods. Since 1982 the pedicled TRAM (trans rectus abdominal myocutaneous) flap has become one of the most popular autologous tissue breast reconstruction procedures. It has also been debated for many years which method of transferring the tissue island is more reliable and has fewer complications—IPSI vs CONTRA [1]. The reasons for complications are the manner of twisting the nourishing blood supply and the tension due to the distance of the pedicle in both procedures [2]. Static thermography and dynamic thermography seem to provide the solution. In our experiment, we measured the medial surface temperature of flaps using static thermography and active dynamic thermography. The results were compared against the number of flap failures in each type of reconstruction. The study was conducted on a group of 20 female patients who underwent breast reconstruction.