Short-term outcome after gluteus maximus myocutaneous flap reconstruction of the pelvic floor following extra-levator abdominoperineal excision of the rectum

Aim Extra-levator abdominoperineal excision (APE) of the rectum has been introduced with the aim of improving the oncological outcome of low rectal cancer. The procedure includes resection of the levator muscles en bloc with the mesorectum, leaving a larger perineal defect than after conventional APE. This study reports short-term outcome of gluteus maximus myocutaneous flap reconstruction on perineal wound healing. Method Sixty-five patients were studied after extra-levator APE and a one-sided myocutaneous flap for a low or locally recurrent rectal cancer at the Karolinska University Hospital from January 2002 to December 2008. Fifty-nine had received neoadjuvant radio- or radiochemotherapy. All perineal complications occurring within 30 days after surgery were registered. In addition, the status of the perineal reconstruction at 6 months and 1 year after surgery was assessed based on medical records from outpatient visits. Results Twenty-seven (41.5%) patients had one or more perineal wound complications. A minor wound infection occurred in 15, while 12 had either a more severe infection with dehiscence or a pelvic abscess. The reconstruction was completely healed in 91% of the patients at 1 year. Conclusion Although the vast majority of the perineal reconstructions were healed at 1 year, the short-term perineal wound complication rate of gluteus maximus flap reconstruction was high.