For patients who require a mastectomy, the DIEP flap reconstruction is an advanced, effective option for breast reconstruction. “DIEP flap” is short for deep inferior epigastric perforator flap--a flap of the skin and tissue from the lower abdomen. A DIEP flap reconstruction is a microsurgical technique that provides a natural-looking breast reconstruction by harvesting skin and fat from the lower abdomen to create a new breast. The blood supply to this tissue (the DIEP flap) comes primarily from small blood vessel branches, called perforators.
What happens during the DIEP flap reconstruction surgery?
Length of procedure and recovery
Benefits of DIEP procedure
There are many benefits to the DIEP flap breast reconstruction:
- Looks and feels like a natural breast
- Spares the abdominal muscles resulting in a very rare rate of abdominal hernia
- Scarring is hidden in the underwear line
- Procedure is done simultaneously with the mastectomy
- The breast reconstruction responds to weight gain and loss the way natural breast tissue would
- Harvesting from the lower abdomen has a slimming effect in the area