Evaluation of Lower Leg Arteries and Fibular Perforators before Microsurgical Fibular Transfer Using Noncontrast-Enhanced Quiescent-Interval Slice-Selective (QISS) Magnetic Resonance Angiography

Abstract

(1) Background: Preoperative imaging of the lower leg arteries is essential for planning fibular grafting. The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and clinical value of non-contrast-enhanced (CE) Quiescent-Interval Slice-Selective (QISS)-magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) for reliably visualizing the anatomy and patency of the lower leg arteries and for preoperatively determining the presence, number, and location of fibular perforators. (2) Methods: The anatomy and stenoses of the lower leg arteries and the presence, number, and location of fibular perforators were determined in fifty patients with oral and maxillofacial tumors. Postoperative outcomes of patients after fibula grafting were correlated with preoperative imaging, demographic, and clinical parameters. (3) Results: A regular three-vessel supply was present in 87% of the 100 legs. QISS-MRA was able to accurately assign the branching pattern in patients with aberrant anatomy. Fibular perforators were found in 87% of legs. More than 94% of the lower leg arteries had no relevant stenoses. Fibular grafting was performed in 50% of patients with a 92% success rate. (4) Conclusions: QISS-MRA has the potential to be used as a preoperative non-CE MRA technique for the diagnosis and detection of anatomic variants of lower leg arteries and their pathologies, as well as for the assessment of fibular perforators.