Initially described for the treatment of cleft palate, the anatomical bases of the buccinator myomucosal flap were described by Bozola et al. (1989). A meticulous search found several reports of its use for the correction of post-palatoplasty oronasal fistulas, with only a few reports of its use for other palate-related pathologies. A retrospective analysis was undertaken of patients treated by the Plastic Surgery Units at the Rio de Janeiro Federal University Hospital (HU-UFRJ) and the São Paulo University Hospital (HC-USP), suffering from palatal lesions not associated with a cleft palate and treated through the use of buccinator myomucosal flaps. The average age was 47 years, with 70% of the patients being male. Assorted aetiologies were noted for palatal defects. When there was significant damage to the soft palate, a superior base pharyngeal flap was used. Of this total, in 71% of the cases only the buccinator myomucosal flap was used. In all cases, the flaps were unilateral, adequately covering the defects in question. The buccinator myomucosal flap is a good option for reconstructing medium to large palate defects, as it is a flap with good vascularization and dimension, in addition to an ample arc of rotation, with primary closure of the donor site, without adding significant morbidity.
Keywords: Mouth rehabilitation; Mouth – anatomy; Palate – anatomy; Palate – surgery.
Copyright © 2014 European Association for Cranio-Maxillo-Facial Surgery. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.