ABSTRACT
Current surgical alternatives to wound healing by secondary intention include free skin grafts, local flaps, free flaps, tissue expansion, or bioengineered skin equivalents. Among these surgical techniques, free skin grafts are still by far the most reliable method, especially to repair defects caused by skin cancers. Some clinicians may insist that free skin grafts are underused when compared with flaps in plastic and reconstructive surgery, and skin grafts are regarded as old-fashioned procedures. Many cutaneous surgeons, however, choose them to treat skin defects caused by cancers and major trauma because of their ability to act as a window for detecting recurrence of high-risk lesions and their simplicity of use in covering large lesions. Skin grafting has also become a popular method for treating chronic ulcers including venous ulcers, pressure sores, ischemic ulcers, diabetic ulcers, radiation induced ulcers, and wounds caused by collagen diseases. All skin surgeons have their own techniques; however, there are principles that every surgeon must follow. This chapter briefly describes skin grafting in respect to its history, classification, indications, mechanism of take, and individual procedures. We also intend this chapter to be helpful for residents who are about to learn surgical techniques.
