[Application of helix water jet to parotid surgery]

Dissecting the facial nerves safely is an important guarantee for the accomplishment of parotidectomy and reduction of postoperative complications. This study was to explore the application of helix water jet to parotidectomy.

Clinical data of 43 patients with parotid tumors, who received operation with helix water jet from Feb. 2004 to Feb. 2005 at Cancer Center of Sun Yat-Sen University, were analyzed. Meanwhile, traditional techniques in parotidectomy was performed in 36 patients (control group). Duration of operation, postoperative drainage volume, postoperative hospitalization, and occurrence of postoperative complications, such as facial nerve dysfunction and salivary fistula, of the 2 groups were compared.

The postoperative drainage volume was significantly lower in water jet group than in control group [(9.89+/-3.74) mL vs. (12.15+/-2.11) mL, P<0.05]. There were no significant differences in duration of operation [(90.28+/-25.30) min vs. (76.32+/-20.74) min, P>0.05], postoperative hospitalization [(6.39+/-1.38) days vs. (6.45+/-1.05) days, P>0.05] between the two groups. Of the 43 patients in water jet group, 6 (14.0%) had grade II facial nerve dysfunction and 1 (2.3%) had grade III facial nerve dysfunction; of the 36 patients in control group, 5 (13.9%) had grade II facial nerve dysfunction, 2 (5.6%) had grade III facial nerve dysfunction, 1 (2.8%) had grade IV facial nerve dysfunction and 1 (2.8%) had salivary fistula. There was no permanent facial nerve dysfunction occurred in both groups. There was no significant difference in the occurrence of complications between the two groups. Nine patients who retained nervus auricularis magnus suffered from slight numbness symptom of auricular lobule.

Use of helix water jet in parotid surgery is safe and confers some advantages over conventional methods of parotid dissection.