> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.theplasticsfella.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Dead Textbooks, 3 DIEP Complication Tips, & Surgical Studio Updates - URL: https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/ - Published: 2025-04-18T21:40:31.000Z - Updated: 2025-04-19T22:03:01.000Z - Description: Also: Foundations in progress, podcast suggestions, & the Sunday quiz. - Author: PlasticsFella - Tags: thePlasticsPaper #### In this week's edition 1. ****✍️** [****Letter from P'Fella**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#a-letter-from-pfella) Why are we still learning from dead textbooks? 2. ****🤓** [****The Sunday Quiz**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#the-sunday-quiz) How well do you know v**enous congestion*? 3. ****🎙️** [****Behind the 'Fella**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#behind-the-fella) Suggest any questions for our next guest. 4. ****🎈** [****Upcoming Events**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#upcoming-events) New event added! 5. ****🚀**[ **New Features**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#new-features) AI Surgical Studio updates! 6. 📚 [****Book Review**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#book-review) Feedback on Foundations by The Plastics Fella. 7. ****🔥** [****Articles of the Week**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#articles-of-the-week) NPWT helps breast recon?, predicting DIEP complications, & a classic publication on free flaps: with 1-sentence summaries. 8. 💕 [****Feedback**](https://www.theplasticsfella.com/april-20th/#feedback) Suggest ideas & give feedback! ## A Letter from P'Fella **We’re Still Learning from Dead Textbooks* 👋 ****Hey Team!** Let’s stop pretending this isn’t a problem. Most plastic surgery textbooks haven’t been updated in years. Some haven’t meaningfully changed in over a decade. Yet we’re still assigning them, quoting them, and building exams around them like they’re gospel. They’re not. They’re outdated — and in some cases, outright wrong. **What’s Broken** Here’s the honest truth. - **Techniques evolve. Textbooks don’t.** You’re learning from operations that aren’t done anymore. Or worse — missing the ones that actually are. - **They never get corrected.** An error in the 2014 edition is still sitting there in the 2023 one. We’ve normalized reading around the mistakes. - **Outdated copies never go away.** You can still buy a textbook from 2007 on Amazon. That’s what students are studying from. That’s what trainees are downloading as PDFs. - **It’s a closed system.** No transparency. No accountability. And definitely no way to challenge what’s written, even when it’s obviously flawed. This isn’t just a publishing issue. It’s a training issue. And it’s making us worse. **So We’re Doing It Differently** We're building a new textbook — **Foundations by The Plastics Fella** — and here’s what we’re refusing to replicate: - **Every chapter gets reviewed annually.** Not in theory. In practice. A full update cycle every 12 months, with tracked changes and transparent version control. - **There are no outdated versions.** You can’t buy an old edition. Everyone sees the same current version. If something changes, everyone benefits. - **Mistakes get fixed. Fast.** There’s a feedback system. If something’s wrong, unclear, or outdated, it doesn’t sit there for another decade. It gets addressed. - **It’s built by the community.** Trainees and surgeons contribute, review, and refine it. It reflects how people actually learn and operate, not just how they publish. **This Isn’t About Innovation. It’s About Necessity.** Plastic surgery moves fast. The resources we learn from should too. We're not trying to be clever. We’re just done accepting that a textbook published in 2012 is still acceptable in 2025. This is the fix. And it starts now. 👉 Join the waiting list if you want early access, or if you just want to see what a modern textbook *should* look like. P’Fella ❤️ ## The Sunday Quiz **How Well Do You Know Venous Congestion?* ****Are you ready to make it to the leaderboard?** Welcome to the ****next round** of The Weekly Quiz. Each edition of thePlasticsPaper includes a quiz question designed to challenge and engage our readers. Keep your wits about you and join in every week — the winner at the end of six rounds will earn you a one-year subscription to thePlasticsPro. ## Behind the 'Fella **Questions for Our Next Guest* 🎧 ****Releasing Soon: Behind the 'Fella Season Two** Our recordings are in progress! For the next guest, we're interviewing a DIEP expert. Whether it's about technique, complications, or training, submit your question below 👇 ## Upcoming Events **New Event Added!* 📅 ****P’Fella’s event calendar** highlights the most impactful conferences, high-yield webinars, and carefully curated courses for you. You can also ****submit your event** and get it featured! We've just added ****ASPS Advocacy Summit** to our calendar; sign up below👇 ## New Features **AI Surgical Studio Version 2.0 Is Here* 🩹 Our ****AI Surgical Studio** just got its newest update: Version 2.0\. We’ve just rolled out a new of the ****AI Surgical Studio** — our interactive, AI-powered tool designed to help you visualise, plan, and refine surgical techniques with precision. Want ****early access to upcoming features**? Join the waitlist below👇 ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a0/9f/a09fd7b4-d396-4b28-aed3-b87e20483292/content/images/2025/03/sutdiooo.png) ## Book Review **Foundations by The Plastics Fella* 📘 The design of our new textbook is in the works, and we want your input. Your feedback helps shape a textbook that fits what you need. ****We are currently testing out different cover designs.** Share your thoughts below 👇 ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a0/9f/a09fd7b4-d396-4b28-aed3-b87e20483292/content/images/2025/04/ChatGPT-Image-Apr-18--2025--08_23_14-PM.png) ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/a0/9f/a09fd7b4-d396-4b28-aed3-b87e20483292/content/images/2025/04/ChatGPT-Image-Apr-19--2025--11_01_23-PM.png) Foundations by The Plastics Fella ## Articles of the Week **3 Interesting Articles with One-Sentence Summaries* ✅ ****Does ciNPT Reduce Donor-Site Complications in DIEP Flap Breast Recon?** ([Escobar-Domingo](https://www.jprasurg.com/article/S1748-6815%2825%2900250-5/abstract?ref=theplasticsfella.com), 2025) In a large cohort study of 1125 flaps, closed-incision negative pressure therapy significantly lowered infection and dehiscence rates at DIEP donor sites, particularly among patients with a BMI >30. ✅ ****Predictors of Complications in DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction** ([Wu](https://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/abstract/2023/10000/predictors%5Fof%5Fcomplications%5Fin%5Fautologous%5Fbreast.5.aspx?ref=theplasticsfella.com), 2023) Each additional hour in theatre increases overall complication risk by 16% in DIEP reconstructions, highlighting operative time as a key modifiable factor in flap success. ✅ ****What Comes After a Failed Free Flap? Insights from 3361 Reconstructions** ([Wei](https://journals.lww.com/plasreconsurg/abstract/2001/10000/the%5Foutcome%5Fof%5Ffailed%5Ffree%5Fflaps%5Fin%5Fhead%5Fand%5Fneck.7.aspx?ref=theplasticsfella.com), 2001) In one of the largest series to date, a second free flap proved more reliable than regional or conservative approaches in salvaging failed reconstructions, especially in the head and neck. ## Feedback ### I hope you enjoyed it 😄 ---