Sialendoscopy-assisted surgery and the chronic obstructive sialadenitis symptoms questionnaire: A prospective study

To prospectively assess symptoms of obstructive sialadenitis before and after sialendoscopy-assisted salivary duct surgery (SASDS) using the chronic obstructive sialadenitis symptoms (COSS) questionnaire to determine and predict impact of interventions.

Prospective cohort study.

Adult patients with chronic obstructive sialadenitis who underwent SASDS were asked to complete the COSS questionnaire and the Short-Form-8 (SF-8) quality-of-life (QOL) survey prior to surgery and 3 months postoperatively. Chronic obstructive sialadenitis symptoms surveys were scored on a scale from 0 to 100.

Forty patients undergoing SASDS, including 54 glands, completed preoperative and postoperative surveys. Overall, the mean COSS score improved from 36.1 (standard error of the mean [SEM] 2.6) preoperatively to 13.5 (SEM 2.4) 3 months postoperatively (p < 0.001). Submandibular gland cases had a significant mean score reduction of 27.8 (from 38.1 to 10.3; p < 0.005). Parotid gland cases had a significant mean score reduction of 13.6 (from 32.6 to 19.0; p < 0.0001). Patients with sialolithiasis-related sialadenitis had greater COSS score improvement after surgery than those with radioactive iodine- or inflammatory-related disease. An improvement in symptoms was seen for 100% and 47% of patients with sialolithiasis and inflammatory etiologies, respectively. The pre- and post-SASDS SF-8 QOL scores were not significantly different.

Obstructive sialadenitis-related symptoms significantly declined 3 months after SASDS. The COSS questionnaire was able to measure changes in sialadenitis symptoms not captured in the SF-8 QOL survey. This is the first study to prospectively survey sialadenitis-specific symptoms to determine impact of surgical interventions.

4. Laryngoscope, 126:1343-1348, 2016.