The procedure

Free flap reconstruction is used for the penile reconstruction of the initiates (a flap is a portion of tissue that can be dissected). Flaps may be composed of any combination of skin, fascia, muscle and bone. These are removed from the patient’s body, mostly in areas like thighs or forearms.

HOW IT’S DONE:

The free flap reconstruction procedure takes 9 to 12 hours.

Skin is removed from the patient’s forearm or thigh

(forearm has little fat, little hair and a large nerve and blood vessel that can be harvested along with the skin and some soft tissue)

The skin is wrapped around the nerve into a tube

The skin is then moulded into the shape of a penis and attached to the body

What is left of the patient’s genitals is pulled and reconstructed

The organ is carefully attached to blood vessels and nerves in the groin

Graphic: Nolo Moima 2 3 5 Skin Nerve Healing: 6-8 weeks to heal, depending on the general health of the patient. 1 4 Free flap is used to describe the "transplantation" of tissue from one site of the body to another. 1