Journal of reconstructive microsurgery
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J Reconstr Microsurg · May 2021
Comparison of Ischemic Preconditioning and Systemic Piracetam for Prevention of Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Musculocutaneous Flaps.
Ischemia-reperfusion injury plays an important role in flap failure. Ischemic preconditioning technique is the only proven method for preventing ischemia-reperfusion injury, but it is not used widely in daily practice because of difficulties such as prolonging the operation time, need for surgical experience, and increasing the risk of complications. This study has been performed with the assumption that piracetam may be a simple and inexpensive alternative to the preconditioning technique due to its antioxidant, antiaggregant, rheological, anti-inflammatory, antiapoptotic, cytoprotective, and immune modulating effects. ⋯ This study shows that systemic piracetam treatment provides protection against ischemia-reperfusion injury in musculocutaneous flaps and can offer a simple and inexpensive alternative to the preconditioning technique.