Delayed skin grafting utilizing autologous banked tissue

In performing bowel flaps for voice reconstruction, it is common practice to delay skin grafting to allow for swelling and monitoring. Harvesting the skin graft at the time of reconstruction and banking it at its donor site allows for later transfer at bedside. Ten patients between January and July of 2006 had skin harvested from their thigh at the time of intestinal transfer and banked at the donor site. Transfer of the graft from donor to recipient site was carried out at bedside between the third and eighth postoperative day with sedation and analgesia. Elevation of the graft was well tolerated and take was over 95% in all cases without related complications. At follow-up between 5 and 12 months all grafts had healed. This is a reliable technique for skin storage in diverse clinical applications or when traditional skin banking cannot be performed because of tissue banking regulations.