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| Skin grafting | |
|---|---|
 Skin graft performed on the ankle due to third degree burns. | |
| ICD-9-CM | 86.6 |
| MedlinePlus | 002982 |
Skin grafting, a type of graft surgery, involves the transplantation of skin. The transplanted tissue is called a skin graft.[1]
Surgeons may use skin grafting to treat:
- extensive wounding or trauma
- burns
- areas of extensive skin loss due to infection such as necrotizing fasciitis or purpura fulminans[2]
- specific surgeries that may require skin grafts for healing to occur – most commonly removal of skin cancers
Skin grafting often takes place after serious injuries when some of the body's skin is damaged. Surgical removal (excision or debridement) of the damaged skin is followed by skin grafting. The grafting serves two purposes: reducing the course of treatment needed (and time in the hospital), and improving the function and appearance of the area of the body which receives the skin graft.
There are two types of skin grafts:
- The more common type involves removing a thin layer of skin from a healthy part of the body (the donor section).
- A full-thickness skin graft involves pinching and cutting skin away from the donor section.
A full-thickness skin graft is more risky, in terms of the body accepting the skin, yet it leaves only a scar line on the donor section, similar to a Cesarean-section scar. In the case of full-thickness skin grafts, the donor section will often heal much more quickly than the injury and causes less pain than a partial-thickness skin graft.
- ^ "Plastic, Aesthetic and Reconstructive Surgery". University of Miami Health System. Archived from the original on December 17, 2014.
- ^ Schulz SA, Edlich RF, Long WB, Gubler KD (October 12, 2022). Bronze MS (ed.). "Necrotizing fasciitis and purpura fulminans". Medscape.