Creating a Biological Breast Implant with an Omental
Fat-Augmented Free Flap
Women with inadequate myocutaneous or fasciocutaneous
soft-tissue donor sites for breast reconstruction after mastectomy are mostly
limited to implants. Alternative substitutes are needed for those who do not
want—or in whom there are contraindications for—implant-based reconstruction.
The authors report a novel technique using an omental fat-augmented free flap
to create an autologous breast mound that has comparable shape and projection
to a breast implant. Three patients with breast cancer who desired unilateral
reconstruction were identified in the period 2019 to 2020. All had insufficient
traditional autologous sites and were averse to the use of implants. A
nipple-sparing mastectomy was performed, and the omentum was laparoscopically
harvested and fat-grafted ex vivo and then encased in acellular dermal matrix
for microvascular anastomoses. The body mass indexes of the three patients were
17.6, 25, and 28.3 kg/m2. Each individual’s mastectomy specimens and corresponding
omentum plus fat-grafting weights were 113.7/228, 271/293, and 270/360 g. No
postoperative complications occurred. The reconstructed breast remains soft,
with stable breast volume at 6 months and without evidence of fat necrosis.
This novel use of fat grafting into an omental flap enveloped in acellular
dermal matrix, the omental fat-augmented free flap, provides a viable and
successful autologous alternative for patients who are not candidates for
traditional autologous breast reconstruction options because of body habitus or
personal preference.
