Tissue welding forceps usage in superficial parotidectomy: a clinical assessment

Tissue welding forceps (TWF) have been used effectively in a number of surgical procedures including blood vessel harvesting and tonsillectomy. Our objective was to assess the safety and efficacy of TWF usage in superficial parotidectomy. We performed a retrospective review of 25 patients between November 2002 and July 2006 who underwent superficial parotidectomy using TWF. The inpatient and outpatient records were reviewed for diagnosis, operative times, estimated blood loss, and postoperative facial paresis. Only one of the 25 patients (4%) who underwent superficial parotidectomy using TWF had transient postoperative facial weakness and no procedure had blood loss of greater than 150 cc. This initial evaluation suggests that use of TWF is safe in superficial parotidectomy and may help reduce the development of postoperative facial paresis.