Usefulness of the galea flap in treatment of extensive frontal bone defects: a study of 14 patients.

We present a technique for treating extensive frontal bone loss after chronic osteitis and subsequent treatment. Unlike the technique usually performed in such cases (exclusion and filling), the frontal sinuses were conserved by isolating them from the reconstructed frontal vault. Isolation was achieved by means of a temporal galea and periosteum flap with a pedicle arising from the superficial temporal vessels. The study concerned 14 patients operated on from two to seven times for osteitis, which persisted in many patients for more than 10 years.