The main aim of the project is to develop a quantitative method for describing relevant parameters such as longitude, average diameter, thickness and volume of deep inferior epigastric perforator flaps before and after passing the rectus abdominis muscle. This information will help surgeons to decide which perforators have the optimal conditions to be used in specific surgery.
Furthermore, an additional tool will be developed to project optimal inferior epigastric perforators based on the parameters mentioned above to provide for the surgeon the location and conditions of different perforators of the patient on the operating table. This tool will be implemented using data from patients in a database that includes around 195 patients with an AngioTAC of the abdominal section, of different sexes and between 37 and 74 years (with an average of 55 years), treated by surgeons or radiologists at the Hospital de Bellvitge in Barcelona from July 2017 to October 2020.
The project lasts two and a half years, until the end of 2023, and is funded by the Surgery Service of the Hospital de Bellvitge, with an amount up to 6,500 euros.