ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Thin split-thickness skin graft is a simple technique which is readily available, inexpensive, and has a high success rate. However, it is only one of the many techniques in the surgeon’s therapeutic arsenal to obtain successful wound healing. Other techniques, sometimes considered complex, can and should be used to solve acute and chronic wound healing problems. In this chapter, we discuss fl aps and skin substitutes. Both these techniques are usually used for wounds presenting with associated soft tissue loss (1,2). Indeed, with both fl aps and skin substitutes, there is a tissue input that should theoretically be justifi ed by soft tissue loss. We shall see later how indications can be extended for certain wounds.
