Summary
Introduction
A Morel-Lavallée lesion can occur after a closed degloving injury. It is a persistent
seroma that may be resistant to conservative methods of treatment such as percutaneous
drainage and compression therapy. We present a novel, successful method of surgical
treatment.
Case report
A 70 year-old lady developed a 30 × 15 cm rapidly enlarging right medial thigh/knee
swelling after being hit by a car. Conservative treatments failed, sarcoma was excluded,
and the diagnosis confirmed, by MR imaging and cytology prior to referral. The lesion
was excised, and blue dye lymphatic mapping used to identify and ligate feeding lymphatic
vessels. The cavity was then closed using fibrin sealant spray and resorbable quilting
sutures. A pressure garment was fitted.
Result
The wound healed without complication, with no recurrence at six months. The patient
returned to normal activities without pressure garments.
Conclusion
This method provides a novel, successful approach to the surgical treatment of a chronic
Morel-Lavallée lesion.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: May 03, 2012
Accepted:
March 31,
2012
Received:
March 7,
2012
Identification
Copyright
© 2012 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
