Breast Reconstruction with Flap Surgery

Breast reconstruction with the use of flap surgery is offered by the experts at The Plastic Surgery Center. The reconstruction flap options include a pedicled TRAM flap, Free TRAM flap, DIEP, and SIEA flap surgery. These methods use one’s own body tissue—skin, muscle, fat, and blood vessels– to reconstruct the breast.

The standards for breast reconstruction following cancer surgery have greatly advanced as women have advocated for medical care. This advocacy resulted in the passage of the Women’s Health and Cancer Rights ACT of 1998 (WHCRA). This federal law mandates coverage of reconstructive surgery following mastectomy for all health plans that include medical and surgical benefits.

Although The Plastic Surgery Center is also an expert in the use of implants and tissue expanders in breast reconstruction, patients’ priorities currently center on Autologous Flap Breast Reconstruction procedures, such as those Flap procedures described above.

The Plastic Surgery Center widens your breast reconstruction options with SIEA flap surgery. Although the SIEA procedure is not an appropriate choice for every candidate, it is possible for a minority of women. Similar to the DIEP flap, it offers the benefits of creating improvements in the abdominal contour and less risk of abdominal weakness. This is an important factor for active, athletic women. Although the decision to use the SIEA flap must be made in the operating room when the surgeon can evaluate the viability of the relevant blood vessels, if the choice for SIEA flap surgery is an option, it will be performed by our expert surgeons.

For further information and to see our patients’ testimony, check out our Breast Reconstruction page.