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Love Handles Offer a New Option in Breast Reconstruction

Posted Date: February 20, 2011

A relatively new technique using tissue from those below-the-waist “love handles” improves cosmetic breast reconstruction in slim, athletic cancer patients without adequate fat sources elsewhere, reported a small Johns Hopkins study.

A relatively new technique using tissue from those below-the-waist “love handles” improves cosmetic breast reconstruction in slim, athletic cancer patients without adequate fat sources elsewhere, reported a small Johns Hopkins study. The report, in the journal Microsurgery details the use of a gluteal region blood vessel—a variation of the SGAP flap termed an LSGAP flap—that allows a portion of the love handle region to be used for breast reconstruction. The tissue used for reconstruction using the LSGAP flap (lumbo-sacral gluteal artery perforator flap) approach detailed by the Johns Hopkins doctors is similar to that used with a LAP flap, however, the tissue used for the LSGAP flap comes from just below the waistline. As a result, the scar produced by the LSGAP flap is lower down on the torso and closely resembles an SGAP scar. A LAP flap, in contrast, is harvested from tissue along, and just above the waistline, and therefore tends to rase the buttock while producing a final scar along the belt-line. If a woman is considering using her love-handle tissue for breast reconstruction, ultimately, the choice between the LSGAP flap and a LAP flap will depend on a woman’s body, her personal preference and the anatomy of her blood vessels.

>>Read more about LAP flaps for breast reconstruction

>>Read more about the LSGAP flap for breast reconstruction on Empowher