Publications

BACKGROUND: The American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) created the Essentials of Leadership (EOL) program to foster leadership skills and networking among current and upcoming plastic surgery leaders. This study elucidates the program's impact on participants, its strengths and weaknesses, and the future of leadership in plastic surgery.

METHODS: A qualitative descriptive design was employed, utilizing semi-structured interviews to explore the experiences of plastic surgeons who participated in the program. The data was analyzed inductively, and codes were reviewed to identify overarching themes.

RESULTS: We interviewed 29 participants who completed EOL at an average of 8.3 years of practice, with an average of 15.5 years at the time of interview. Significant themes were identified, including motivations for joining, skills gained, and the program's impact. Many surgeons found themselves at a professional crossroads, seeking leadership skills and a broader network. Participants found that the following were most beneficial: 1) conflict resolution and negotiation, 2) understanding personality dynamics, and 3) effective meeting management. The program had a long-lasting impact on participants through two key outcomes: 1) enduring relationships and 2) increased confidence in pursuing career changes. Participants expressed hope that plastic surgery leaders will support greater leadership programming, increase diversity, and unite to innovate and protect their specialty.

CONCLUSION: The EOL program provides time for reflection, relationship building, and leadership development. Participants walk away with practical skills, meaningful connections, and renewed purpose, demonstrating the program's critical role as a catalyst for career advancement and long-term leadership in plastic surgery.

Cartilage regeneration remains a major clinical challenge because cartilage has limited healing capacity and must withstand substantial mechanical loading. Silk fibroin, a cocoon-derived biomaterial with tunable mechanical properties, has emerged as a promising scaffold material for cartilage tissue engineering. This systematic review evaluates the biomechanical performance, fabrication approaches, and regenerative potential of silk fibroin bioprinted scaffolds for cartilage repair. A systematic review was conducted according to PRISMA guidelines. Primary outcomes included scaffold mechanical properties relevant to cartilage function. Secondary outcomes included scaffold composition, fabrication methods, biological performance, clinical applications, and reported limitations. Of 918 identified records, 24 studies published between 2014 and 2025 met the inclusion criteria. Most were preclinical studies using silk fibroin-based hydrogels, often combined with hyaluronic acid, gelatin, collagen, or synthetic polymers. Mechanical properties varied according to scaffold composition and crosslinking methods. Reinforced scaffolds generally demonstrated improved stiffness, structural support, and load distribution. Silk fibroin scaffolds consistently supported chondrogenesis and cartilage-like tissue formation. However, challenges remain, including mechanical mismatch with native cartilage, construct instability, cell loss, and suboptimal degradation profiles. Overall, silk fibroin bioprinted scaffolds demonstrated support for chondrogenesis and cartilage-like tissue formation in preclinical studies for cartilage regeneration. Future research should focus on standardized biomechanical testing, long-term in vivo evaluation, and clinically relevant scaffold designs to facilitate translation toward functional cartilage repair.

BACKGROUND: Extensor pollicis longus (EPL) rupture can be managed using several surgical techniques, with palmaris longus (PL) tendon graft reconstruction and extensor indicis proprius (EIP) transfer among the most commonly used options. Comparative clinical data between these techniques remain limited, particularly regarding functional outcomes and delayed reconstruction. This retrospective cohort study evaluated functional outcomes and complications following EPL reconstruction using a PL graft or EIP transfer in a single-institution cohort.

METHODS: This retrospective cohort study included demographic, surgical, and outcome data of all patients who presented to our institution with an EPL rupture between 2004 and 2020. Patients were identified using Current Procedural Terminology codes, International Classification of Diseases, Ninth/Tenth Revision codes, and operating room schedules. Group comparisons were performed using Fisher exact test, χ2 test, and t test, as appropriate; P < .05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS: A total of 38 patients with EPL rupture were identified, including 8 treated with PL grafts and 30 with EIP transfer. Both groups demonstrated improvement in Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (DASH) scores. The PL graft group showed a larger mean reduction in DASH scores. Three patients in the EIP transfer group (11%) experienced index finger extensor lag or limited EPL function, whereas no such cases occurred in the PL graft group.

CONCLUSION: Both PL graft reconstruction and EIP transfer were associated with postoperative functional improvement in this cohort. Although the PL graft group demonstrated a larger mean reduction in DASH scores, the marked differences in baseline characteristics and surgeon-directed treatment selection preclude firm comparative conclusions. Delayed PL graft reconstruction was nevertheless associated with acceptable postoperative outcomes in this series.

BACKGROUND: Suzetrigine is a non-opioid, highly selective NaV1.8 pain-signal inhibitor of the voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.8, with no addiction potential approved in the US for moderate-to-severe acute pain in January 2025.

METHODS: In this phase 4, single-arm study, suzetrigine was administered as part of multimodal therapy (MMT;100-mg preoperatively, then 50-mg q12h) for ≤14days. Patients underwent aesthetic/reconstructive surgeries wherein opioids are commonly used ≥72h postoperatively. Investigators determined MMT, with acetaminophen and/or ibuprofen recommended. The primary endpoint was proportion of patients reporting good/very good/excellent on a patient global assessment (PGA) for pain control at end of treatment. Opioid-rescue and safety were also evaluated.

RESULTS: Patients (N=99) underwent various procedures, the most common being aesthetic and reconstructive breast procedures (33.3% and 13.1%, respectively), abdominoplasty with liposuction (28.3%), and turbinoplasty (13.1%). Most patients (90.7%) rated suzetrigine as part of MMT as good/very good/excellent on a PGA for pain control at end of treatment, which was consistently high across surgeries. Most patients (90.9%) did not require opioid-rescue; those who did received 2.4 tablets (mean) after surgery (mean:2.0days). Most common MMT was suzetrigine with only acetaminophen and/or ibuprofen (78.8%), while 12.1% used suzetrigine alone. Suzetrigine was safe and well-tolerated. Adverse events were consistent with postoperative settings.

CONCLUSIONS: Suzetrigine demonstrated highly effective pain management and enabled opioid-free recovery for most patients (90.9%) when initiated preoperatively and as part of MMT in aesthetic and reconstructive surgeries wherein opioids are commonly used postoperatively; in contrast, in studies of mixed cosmetic procedures in the literature, <10% did not require opioids.

Background: Despite advancements in total knee arthroplasty (TKA), complications requiring revisions still occur. In these cases, flap coverage is often required to achieve a stable soft tissue envelope. This study analyzes wound complications following flap coverage for revision TKAs (rTKA) on a national level. Methods: Patients who underwent rTKA from 2012 to 2020 were identified in the National Surgery Quality Improvement Program database using Current Procedural Terminology codes. The cohort was divided into 2 subgroups: patients who underwent rTKA with a pedicled or free flap and those without a flap. A propensity score was generated from patients' baseline characteristics. A multivariable logistic regression model adjusting for propensity scoring and wound classification was constructed to assess differences in outcomes. Results: rTKA was performed in 33,922 encounters, 104 (0.3%) of which utilized a flap (99 pedicled and 5 free flaps). Patients who received flaps had poorer preoperative functional status, higher frailty scores, longer operative times, longer hospital stays, and were more likely to have contaminated or dirty/infected wounds. Patients who underwent flaps had higher reoperation rates compared to patients who did not (12.1% vs 3.0%, P < .001). Following propensity score matching, flap coverage was not associated with systemic complications, dehiscence, or superficial or deep surgical site infection. Conclusion: Soft tissue flap coverage was more common in large and infected wounds following TKA. Higher wound infection rates among flap patients are likely due to the complexity of the original wound and possibly lack of adequate source control. Patients undergoing rTKA for infection may benefit from wound optimization before flap reconstruction.

Traumatic injuries often result in nerve tissue damage and functional deficits due to limited regeneration. Silk fibroin, a biopolymer with inherent biocompatibility and tunable properties, is a promising material for 3D-bioprinted neural tissue scaffolds. This review highlights recent advancements in silk-derived composite scaffolds, often incorporating additional materials like collagen or conductive polymers to enhance their performance. This review examines how material composition, scaffold architecture, and fabrication strategy influence biological response and functional recovery. This comprehensive review follows PRISMA guidelines and uses comprehensive searches of PubMed, MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Cochrane Central, and ClinicalTrials.gov for studies published through 2025. Studies were screened for eligibility based on substance type, mechanical properties, production methods, and outcomes. Findings were synthesized qualitatively. Twelve studies were included, comprising rat (50%), canine (8.3%), and in vitro (41.7%) models. Analysis reveals that silk fibroin acts as a highly adaptable mechanical backbone. It can consistently integrate with bioactive additives (collagen, dECM) or conductive polymers (Polypyrrole, MXene) to meet specific therapeutic demands. For spinal cord injuries, composites reached a compressive modulus capable of resisting physiological pressures and preventing scaffold collapse. In soft tissue applications, silk-hydrogel blends provided localized release of exosomes and small molecules during the acute injury phase, reducing neuroinflammatory markers. Additionally, adding conductive materials allowed the scaffolds to bridge electrical gaps and promote Schwann cell proliferation and neuronal differentiation. Furthermore, 3D bioprinting enabled the creation of defined microchannels that replicate native fascicular architecture. In vivo outcomes consistently showed superior axonal regeneration, myelination, and synaptic reconnection compared to controls, correlating with significant improvements in electrophysiological and motor function. This review highlights the clinical potential of silk fibroin-based 3D-printed biomaterials for nerve regeneration, including neural repair and neural tissue engineering. More recent studies place greater emphasis on integrating mechanical, architectural, and biological considerations into scaffold design, resulting in increasingly multifunctional scaffold systems. Despite promising efficacy, the heterogeneity of fabrication methods and the predominance of rodent models highlight the need for standardized protocols and evaluations in relevant models to facilitate clinical translation.

INTRODUCTION: In the vast landscape of commercially available and newly emerging meshes for abdominal wall repair, surgeons must understand the biomechanical advantages of current synthetic and biologic mesh materials.

METHODS: A librarian conducted a literature search on PubMed, Web of Science, and CENTRAL, following PRISMA guidelines, to identify relevant articles published from January 2010 to January 2024. Two independent reviewers performed all screening steps. An exploratory quantitative synthesis was performed using generalized linear models with a Gamma distribution and log link.

RESULTS: Our study identified 30 studies describing the physico-mechanical properties of 67 unique meshes. The majority of novel mesh materials were synthetic (85.07%, n = 57), compared to biologic (14.92%, n = 10). Pore sizes ranged from 0.10 mm² to 5.0 mm². They were subcategorized as small (0.01-0.28 mm2), medium (0.28-0.79 mm2), large (0.79-3.14 mm2), and very large (> 3.14 mm2), based on previous studies, which found these denominations to be more informative than the terms "microporous" and "macroporous." Suture retention strength, tensile strength, and burst strength were compared. Synthetic medium- to large-pore mesh performed sufficiently to withstand intra-abdominal pressures in terms of burst strength (>50 N/cm), tensile strength (>50 N/cm), and suture retention (>20 N) compared to small-pore synthetic mesh. Among biologic meshes, cross-linked biologic meshes demonstrated strong tensile and suture-retention strengths; however, data on other biomechanical properties were lacking.

CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate the need to understand how the structural characteristics of each fully mesh design, such as fabrication technique and pore size, in conjunction with mechanical properties such as tensile strength, burst strength, and suture retention strength, influence clinical outcomes.