Interesting. Off the top of my head, I recall an Egyptian Doctor and a Russian Doctor who also used flaps. I think one of them (maybe both?) used a flap from the inner thigh. Dr. Monreal doesn\'t discuss it much. In his paper, he leans toward lipo-fill.
In the discussion, do you remember the patient who needed fat removed due to his post-op weight gain? I had always wondered about the effect of weight loss (and gain) on
FFT and
Dermal Grafts. I\'ve had my
Dermal Grafts in for 22 years. They have shrunk up a bit and become nodular over time. Not sure I\'d call them \"dead.\" I believe I\'ve noticed the most change when I\'ve lost significant amounts of weight, especially in the last 5 years. Unfortunately, gaining the weight back didn\'t plump the grafts back up. It makes sense to me that when using a flap though, weight gain would re-fatten the flap. Yes, the flap is invasive. But, I like the idea of the flap as a more permanent filler by retaining its original blood supply. Sometimes I\'m impressed that my grafts have lasted as long as they have, existing where they do.
Years ago, I inquired about a reconstruction from the Russian Doctor, who declined me. My VY lengthening procedure is a mess - the typical dorsal hairy lump at the base - making my issues with my
Dermal Grafts moot. Had I the $$$, I probably would have already had a reconstruction surgery and tried out a new filler. Who knows what I\'d have in me? Another DFG, Allo, Bella,
HA,
PMMA? Seeing what some of the other guys have gone through, being broke may have saved me a few wrong turns. I came back to
PhalloBoards after a couple years away until the last week or so (I didn\'t post much when I was around, but read a lot and corresponded with some the vets via pm).
Reading and re-reading some stories, the trend of \"What do I do now!?\" (understandable given the circumstances) tends to be followed by more surgery and more \'What do I do now!?\" And, sometimes when someone disappears for 3-6 months, their eventual update is \"did nothing - it got better.\" I think those are obvious observations.
Seeker