[SCARPA FASCIA AND ABDOMINAL WALL DEEP ADIPOSE COMPARTMENT PRESERVATION IN ABDOMINOPLASTY - CURRENT CLINICAL AND ANATOMICAL REVIEW].

During the last two decades, in parallel to the increased prevalence of bariatric procedures, there has been a marked increase in the prevalence of abdominoplasty surgery in the United States, and in accordance an increase in the scientific and clinical research related to all aspects of this technique. The most common complication of abdominoplasty is the formation of post-operative seroma. Various theories have been raised regarding the pathophysiology of seroma formation, and numerous methods for seroma prevention have been employed and tested. In the early 90's, a new theory argued that post-operative seroma formation is secondary to damage caused to the abdominal wall's lymphatic drainage during flap undermining. In light of this theory, a new surgical technique was suggested to execute the flap undermining in a more superficial plane. This enabled the preservation of the scarpa fascia and the deep adipose compartment, which preserved the integrity of the abdominal wall lymphatic collectors. This method was successful in reducing the rate of postoperative seroma formation. Recent studies have shed new light on the anatomy of the abdominal lymphatic collectors, pathophysiology of seroma formation and methods of its prevention. This new data undermines the foundations of the scarpa fascia preservation theory, and the surgical technique that was derived from it. A new theory that tries to settle the contradiction between the clinical success of the technique in reducing seromas and the new findings regarding abdominal wall's lymphatic collectors anatomy, is the presence of a 'sticky interface' between the deep adipose compartment and the flap.