How I do it: Pedicle planning with surrogate skin.

Preplanning a pedicle using foam polyethylene helps eliminate errors of size and location and allows less scarring, less wasted tissue, less anesthesia time, and better assurance of fit and survival of the pedicle. The foam sheet is inexpensive, easily cut, can be sterilized, and resembles skin in compressibility, tension, and torque resistance. This technique for pedicle planing with surrogate skin is demonstrated in a variety of large and small pedicles.