Rectus abdominis muscle free flap harvest by laparoscopic sheath-sparing technique.

Previous reports of endoscopic rectus abdominis muscle harvest have described techniques that are hampered by the need for anterior rectus sheath division or mechanical devices to maintain the optical cavity. The authors report the first successful clinical case of a laparoscopic sheath-sparing rectus abdominis muscle harvest for free tissue transfer. It offers considerable advantages over the traditional open method and, with the help of an experienced laparoscopic surgeon, it should add little to operative time.