Purpose: The aim of this study was to identify the factors leading to postoperative complications following surgical management of laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers. Procedures: Between 2001 and 2008, the medical records of 107 laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer patients requiring laryngectomy or pharyngolaryngectomy at our hospital were reviewed. The incidence of wound complications and correlation of complications with clinicopathological factors were investigated by univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: The overall incidence of wound complication was 33.6%. The complication incidence was 35.2, 21.7 and 46.2% for the primary surgery, radiation and chemoradiation groups, respectively. Diabetes mellitus and bilateral paratracheal node dissection were significantly correlated and were independent risk factors according to multivariate analysis. Bleeding from a large vessel occurred in 4 patients, and there were significant correlations with chemoradiation. Conclusion: Preoperative chemoradiation was not a significant risk factor for wound complication in this study. However, once postoperative wound complications occurred, they tended to produce lethal outcomes.

Keywords:
Laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancers, Diabetes mellitus, Bilateral paratracheal node dissection, Chemoradiation, Postoperative complications, Pharyngocutaneous fistula
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© 2011 S. Karger AG, Basel
2011
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