Short Runs for a Long Slide: Principalization in Complex Facial Restoration after Acid Attack Burn Injury

Abstract

Burn injuries are responsible for a significant portion of surgically treatable morbidity throughout the world and particularly in underdeveloped and developing countries. Intentional flame, chemical, and contact burns are unfortunately a common mechanism of injury. It is estimated that intentional chemical burns are responsible for between 2 and 20% of burn injuries seen at burn centers in lower income countries. Women are commonly targeted and the perpetrators are often known to the victims. The combination of a high disease prevalence, limited surgical and anesthetic resources, a vulnerable patient population, and largely disfiguring, nonlethal injuries present unique challenges for the reconstructive surgeon who may not encounter such cases regularly. In this article, we present a case of a 16-year-old female who sustained severe, full-thickness burns to the face including eyelids, neck, abdomen, and upper extremities after an intentional acid attack. She began her treatment course with us approximately 1 year after the injury. The deformities of her oral and periorbital regions presented particularly difficult reconstructive problems, including impending visual loss. Using plastic surgical principalization, we provided our patient adequate restoration of facial form and function through numbers of interventions using fundamental and state-of-the-art techniques.