International forum of allergy & rhinology
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Int Forum Allergy Rhinol · Dec 2018
Case ReportsTechnique for reconstruction of large clival defects through an endoscopic-assisted tunneled retropharyngeal approach.
Reconstruction of the clivus and posterior cranial base defects following endoscopic skull-base surgery can be particularly challenging. Commonly, defects in this region are repaired with pedicled mucoperichondrial flaps from the sinonasal cavity. Complex and large defects often require regional or free flaps, particularly when intranasal flaps have been exhausted. While there are no primary barriers to routing flaps into the clivus or nasopharynx in large open approaches, secondary surgical corridors are necessary during endoscopic cases for routing of free flaps. Routing of free-flap pedicles for endoscopic cranial base reconstruction has been described through secondary surgical corridors created through the maxillary sinus and infratemporal fossa. Here we describe the technique of a more direct pedicle route to the clivus through the retropharyngeal space. ⋯ The retropharyngeal space offers a direct route for tunneling free flaps for the repair of large clival defects during endoscopic skull-base surgery. Several advantages include a less circuitous pedicle route, mucosalization of the fascial flap, avoidance of midfacial degloving, and avoidance of potential disruption of the maxillary sinus.