Island composite nasal flap for nasal dorsum skin defects.

[BACKGROUND] Skin defects on the nasal dorsum remain a challenge for the plastic surgeon. There are few local nasal flap options for the repair of proximally positioned nasal skin defects.

[METHODS] During a 3-year period, 22 patients were treated after excision of skin cancer in the proximal two-thirds of the nose. Nine patients (41%) were female and 13 (59%) were male, with an average age of 69 years. All patients were operated on under local anesthesia. The average follow-up was 25 months.

[RESULTS] In all patients, after tumor ablation, the skin defect was closed with an island composite nasal skin flap. Pathohistologic analysis confirmed that the margins of the removed tumor were free of malignant cells. Six patients (27.3%) had squamous cell and 16 (72.7%) had basal cell carcinoma. There was no total or partial flap loss. None of the patients has suffered from recurrence of the tumor.

[CONCLUSIONS] The island composite nasal flap is a reliable technique for the closure of proximal nasal skin defects. Complications in the elevation of the island composite flap were rare, and the final result was acceptable.