Posttraumatic fatty deformities

During the last ten years we treated five patients with accumulated fat localized at the site of previously sustained trauma. The purpose of this paper is to report on these cases and to describe the techniques used in their treatment, in addition to the discussion of the causal relationship between fat accumulation and trauma. Three of these patients were treated with the conventional methods of excision with or without dermafat flap. This was done before the operation of suction lipectomy was popularized in the USA. The last two patients were treated with suction lipectomy. The location of these posttraumatic fat accumulations were the lateral thigh (saddle bag) and the calf. Significant improvement has been obtained in all patients, especially in those who were treated with suction lipectomy. The patients were followed-up for two to five years and the absence of the recurrence of the deformity was noticed in all cases.