The lateral circumflex femoral artery provides the blood supply to the anterolateral thigh and greater trochanter. Its descending branch is the pedicle for the ALT (anterolateral thigh) free flap, the most versatile and widely used free flap in reconstructive surgery worldwide, providing large amounts of fasciocutaneous or perforator-based tissue for head-and-neck, extremity, and trunk reconstruction.
| Origin | Deep femoral artery (profunda femoris) |
|---|---|
| Course | Runs laterally behind the sartorius and rectus femoris, divides into ascending (to the trochanter), transverse (around the femur), and descending (to the knee) branches |
| Branches |
|
The ALT flap based on perforators from the LCFA descending branch can provide up to 35 × 20 cm of skin, fascia, or muscle (with the vastus lateralis). Preoperative CT angiography or Doppler mapping identifies perforator location. The ALT is the first-choice flap at many centres for head and neck reconstruction after the DIEP in breast reconstruction.
Anterolateral thigh flap based on LCFA descending branch perforators providing versatile fasciocutaneous tissue for reconstruction with minimal donor site morbidity.
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