Arch Plast Surg.  2018 Nov;45(6):550-556. 10.5999/aps.2017.01760.

Analysis of gluteal subcutaneous and muscle thickness in infants and children for application to intramuscular injection, autologous fat grafting, and gluteal artery perforator flaps

• Min HJ
• Kim YJ

• KMID: 2427545
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5999/aps.2017.01760

Abstract

BACKGROUND
To achieve improvements in intramuscular injection, autologous fat grafting, and gluteal artery perforator flaps in infants and children, the relationships of computed tomography (CT)-determined gluteal muscle thickness (MT) and subcutaneous tissue thickness (SCT) with age and body mass index (BMI) were analyzed.
METHODS
Gluteal SCT and MT at ventrogluteal (VG) and dorsogluteal (DG) sites were measured in a standardized manner in 350 patients aged 0 to 6 years who had visited a tertiary hospital and had undergone abdominopelvic CT between January 2005 and December 2016. Recorded measurements were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance and stepwise multiple regression to identify the factors that were most closely related to MT and SCT.
RESULTS
Subcutaneous tissue at VG sites was thinner than at DG sites, but not significantly so in any age group. Muscles tended to be thinner at VG sites in 4 to 7-year-old, but thicker at VG sites in 1 to 3-year-old, though the differences were not significant. MT in the VG and DG regions was found to be related to age, and SCT in these regions to be related to age and BMI.
CONCLUSIONS
The VG and DG sites should be considered as alternatives for intramuscular injection in infants and children when the anterolateral site is problematic. In addition, considering the gluteal MT and SCT of infants and children should help produce good results in autologous fat grafting and gluteal artery perforator flap harvesting.

Keyword

Injections, intramuscular; Buttocks; Surgical flaps; Child

MeSH Terms

Arteries*
Body Mass Index
Buttocks
Child*
Child, Preschool
Humans
Infant*
Injections, Intramuscular*
Muscles
Perforator Flap*
Subcutaneous Tissue
Surgical Flaps
Tertiary Care Centers
Transplants*