The Utility of Sub-Mental Artery Island Flap for Reconstruction of Oral Cavity Defect After Oncological Resection: An Institutional Experience

The submental artery island flap has been used for reconstruction of mild to moderate size oral defects after resection despite its controversy of oncological safety.Our study aims to assess the efficiency and oncological safety of submental artery flap in oral reconstruction.Twenty-three oral cancer patients who underwent resection and reconstruction using the submental artery island flap at State Cancer Institute, Guwahati, India, between February 2021 and February 2022 were retrospectively studied for the flap viability, complications, and function and locoregional recurrence.There were 9 men and 14 women with mean age of 58.56 years. The follow up period ranged from 7 months to 18 months with a median of 12 months. There was no loss of flap, i.e., 100% success rate of flap survival. One patient presented with locoregional recurrence at 11 months of follow up. Three male patients had hair growth on the flap inside oral cavity. There was one case of marginal nerve palsy and one case of donor site wound dehiscence which healed conservatively. The functions and donor site cosmesis were good in all the patients.Submental artery island flap is a good option for reconstruction in select cases of oral cancer.