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Sensory changes associated with selective neck dissection
S H Saffold1, M K Wax, A Nguyen
1Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Oregon Health Sciences University, Portland 97201, USA.
Objective:
To evaluate sensory changes in the head and neck region associated with selective neck dissection with or without preservation of cervical root branches.
Design:
Retrospective cohort study.
Setting:
University tertiary referral hospital and a Veterans Affairs hospital.
Patients:
Fifty-seven patients who had undergone 84 neck dissections with or without preservation of the sensory cervical root branches 3 or more months before evaluation.
Interventions:
Questionnaire combined with head and neck sensory examination.
Main Outcome Measures:
Neck and facial sensory function.
Results:
Neck dissections with preservation of the cervical rootlets were most likely to be associated with a small area of anesthesia in the upper neck below the body of the mandible and anterior to the mid-body of the mandible (P=.03). Neck dissections without rootlet-preserving technique increased the area of anesthesia to include all other areas of the neck (P= .02).
Conclusions:
Preservation of the cervical root branches resulted in a small, limited, and uniform area of the neck rendered permanently anesthetic. Conversely, sacrifice of the nerve branches led to a pattern of anesthesia involving the entire neck.
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