Abstract
The heel comprises the epidermis, minimal subcutaneous tissue, a dense septum, and
the calcaneus. Injury to any of these structures can impair the ability to walk. The
soft tissue or calcaneal bone can be injured by trauma. Injuries incurred in war are
usually high-energy traumas caused by weapons such as rifles, rockets, and land mines.
Such injuries can be life threatening and involve the loss of tissue, including skin,
soft tissue, bone, and neurovascular tissue. Two main treatment protocols are used
for such injuries with large tissue defects: amputation and reconstruction. We describe
a reconstruction with an osteomyocutaneous fibular flap for a heel injury. At the
2-year follow-up point, the patient had 30% loss of ankle range of motion. The visual
analog scale score had dramatically decreased from 8 to 1, and the patient was satisfied
with the result. In conclusion, patients with significant problems such as infection,
pain, and anatomic deterioration of the calcaneus can be successfully treated using
an osteomyocutaneous fibular flap in a single surgery.
Level of Clinical Evidence
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: December 25, 2017
Footnotes
Financial Disclosure: None reported.
Conflict of Interest: None reported.
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 by the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. All rights reserved.