Scholarlink

Background <p>Cranioplasty in patients with a compromised soft tissue envelope (e.g. scarred or grafted) carries a high risk of wound complications. We present a strategy to mitigate this risk in a patient with a large cranial defect and a scarred, grafted scalp.</p> Case description <p>A 38-year-old male presented with a large disfiguring bifrontal cranial defect following a decompressive craniectomy for trauma. His initial surgery was complicated by ischemic scalp necrosis, managed with a skin graft directly onto the dura, creating a high-risk environment for wound complications and implant exposure during direct cranioplasty. A two-stage approach was planned. First, subgaleal tissue expanders were inserted and serially inflated over three months. Second, following expander removal, a custom-designed polyetheretherketone (PEEK) implant was successfully placed. The surgical technique and outcomes are detailed.</p> Conclusion <p>In patients with poor scalp quality, staged soft tissue expansion is a safe and feasible method to create a robust vascularized envelope, enabling definitive and safe PEEK cranioplasty for large skull defects.</p>

错误：搜索内容不能为空，请输入英文关键词
错误：关键词超出字数限制，请精简
高级检索

Staged custom polyetheretherketone (PEEK) cranioplasty with preliminary tissue expansion in a high-risk patient with compromised scalp: case report

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

    开放获取

  • 发表日期：

    2026年6月28日

查看全文
  • Nour Elnoamany,
  • Hattem Hassan,
  • Abdallah Alsadek,
  • Mayada Abouelghar,
  • Mohamed Nabil Elmarawany

摘要

Background

Cranioplasty in patients with a compromised soft tissue envelope (e.g. scarred or grafted) carries a high risk of wound complications. We present a strategy to mitigate this risk in a patient with a large cranial defect and a scarred, grafted scalp.

Case description

A 38-year-old male presented with a large disfiguring bifrontal cranial defect following a decompressive craniectomy for trauma. His initial surgery was complicated by ischemic scalp necrosis, managed with a skin graft directly onto the dura, creating a high-risk environment for wound complications and implant exposure during direct cranioplasty. A two-stage approach was planned. First, subgaleal tissue expanders were inserted and serially inflated over three months. Second, following expander removal, a custom-designed polyetheretherketone (PEEK) implant was successfully placed. The surgical technique and outcomes are detailed.

Conclusion

In patients with poor scalp quality, staged soft tissue expansion is a safe and feasible method to create a robust vascularized envelope, enabling definitive and safe PEEK cranioplasty for large skull defects.