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Danforth et al. Plast Aesthet Res 2021;8:48 Plastic and
DOI: 10.20517/2347-9264.2021.34
Aesthetic Research

Review Open Access

Intra-abdominal donors for vascularized lymph node
transfer: an update and review

Rachel Danforth, Roman Skoracki

Department of Plastic Surgery, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Correspondence to: Dr. Rachel Danforth, Department of Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery, The Ohio State University Wexner
Medical Center, 410 W. 10th Ave, Columbus, OH 43210, USA. E-mail: rachel.m.danforth@gmail.com

How to cite this article: Danforth R, Skoracki R. Intra-abdominal donors for vascularized lymph node transfer: an update and
review. Plast Aesthet Res 2021;8:48. https://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2347-9264.2021.34

Received: 16 Apr 2021 First Decision: 28 Jun 2021 Revised: 16 Jul 2021 Accepted: 28 Jul 2021 First online: 4 Aug 2021

Academic Editor: Matthew L Iorio Copy Editor: Xi-Jun Chen Production Editor: Xi-Jun Chen

Abstract
Lymphedema continues to be a very challenging clinical problem. While compression and physical therapy remain
the foundation of treatment, recent advances in microsurgery and super-microsurgery have allowed for the
development of promising surgical options. One of these options is vascularized lymph node transfer (VLNT),
which has gained significant popularity over recent years. However, there is no consensus on the ideal donor lymph
node basin for VLNT. In addition, the most commonly reported donor sites, including the groin, supraclavicular,
submental, and lateral thoracic nodes, carry the risk of iatrogenic lymphedema and/or visible scarring. In order to
avoid these risks, the use of intra-abdominal donor sites for VLNT has been pursued. This article reviews the
reported techniques and outcomes for each of the intra-abdominal donor sites for VLNT.

Keywords: Lymphedema, lymph node transfer, omentum, jejunum

INTRODUCTION
Lymphedema is a very challenging clinical problem for physicians and can be chronically debilitating for
patients. Lymphedema is the progressive enlargement of an area of the body, most commonly a limb,
resulting from lymphatic dysfunction. It is categorized by excess fluid accumulation and swelling in its early
stages but can progress to adipose deposition and eventually fibrotic changes.

© The Author(s) 2021. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, sharing,
adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, for any purpose, even commercially, as
long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and
indicate if changes were made.

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