Introduction to Propeller Flaps .

The editors of this issue of Seminars in Plastic Surgery dedicated to propeller flaps met in 2009 at the 1st Tokyo Meeting on Perforator and Propeller Flaps. On that occasion, as part of the advisory panel of the meeting, they contributed to the definition and classification of these flaps. Since then, several evolutions and new applications of propeller flaps appeared in the literature. In 2019, the editors met again in Bologna, Italy, where they decided to collect the experiences from prominent authors in propeller flap surgery and provide them to the readers in this monographic dedicated publication

The Tokyo consensus on propeller flaps.

BACKGROUND: Over the past few years, the use of propeller flaps, which base their blood supply on subcutaneous tissue or isolated perforators, has become increasingly popular. Because no consensus has yet been reached on terminology and nomenclature of the propeller flap, different and confusing uses of the term can be found in the literature. METHODS: In this article, the authors report the consensus on the definition and classification of propeller flaps reached by the authors that gathered at the First Tokyo Meeting on Perforator and Propeller Flaps in June of 2009. Some peculiar aspects of the surgical technique are discussed. RESULTS: A propeller flap can be defined as an island flap that reaches the recipient site through an axial rotation. The classification is based on the nourishing pedicle (subcutaneous pedicled propeller flap, perforator pedicled propeller flap, supercharged propeller flap), the degrees of skin island rotation (90 to 180 degrees) and, when possible, the artery of origin of the perforator. CONCLUSIONS: The propeller flap is a useful reconstructive tool that can achieve good cosmetic and functional results. A flap should be called a propeller flap only if it fulfils the definition above. The type of nourishing pedicle, the source vessel (when known), and the degree of skin island rotation should be specified for each flap

Gene Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases – Protocol, Standard Operative Procedures and Questionnaires

This publication contains the protocol and standard operating procedures of the GEIRD (Gene Environment Interaction in Respiratory Diseases) study. It is the result of three years of project work and discussion by Italian researchers involved in this study whose aim was to investigate the role that environmental factors, oxidative stress and genes play on the occurrence and persistence of respiratory diseases

The Gene-Environment Interactions in Respiratory Diseases (GEIRD) Project

The role of genetic and environmental factors, as well as their interaction, in the natural history of asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is largely unknown. This is mainly due to the lack of large-scale analytical epidemiological/genetic studies aimed at investigating these 3 respiratory conditions simultaneously. The GEIRD project is a collaborative initiative designed to collect information on biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress, individual and ecological exposures, diet, early-life factors, smoking habits, genetic traits and medication use in large and accurately defined series of asthma, allergic rhinitis and COPD phenotypes. It is a population-based multicase-control design, where cases and controls are identified through a 2-stage screening process (postal questionnaire and clinical examination) in pre-existing cohorts or new samples of subjects. It is aimed at elucidating the role that modifiable and genetic factors play in the occurrence, persistence, severity and control of inflammatory airway diseases, by way of the establishment of a historical multicentre standardized databank of phenotypes, contributed by and openly available to international epidemiologists. Researchers conducting population-based surveys with standardized methods may contribute to the public-domain case-control database, and use the resulting increased power to answer their own scientific questions