The senile functional evolution of the larynx after supracricoid reconstructive surgery

Supracricoid partial laryngectomy is a relevant organ-preserving surgical technique used for the treatment of early or locally advanced laryngeal tumors with an oncologic outcome comparable with that of total laryngectomy. This reconstructive surgery is certainly technically feasible also in the elderly, but the problem is postoperatively as the patient may lack the will and strength to be successfully rehabilitated. The goal was to evaluate functional outcomes, in a maximum follow-up period of ten years from the end of the postoperative follow-up, in a cohort of elderly patients to look at the senile evolution of the laryngeal post surgical function comparing the amount of resection and grade of possible impairment of swallowing and phonatory parameters. A group of 33 patients were selected for a retrospective study aimed at evaluating the long-term evolution of laryngeal functionality after surgery, with the baseline at 5 years from the end of follow-up. All the patients had three-monthly visits for a period up to ten years, during which the objective and subjective swallowing and phonatory parameters were recorded, analyzed and, at the end of the study, compared with baseline. The results suggest that long-term post surgical functional problems may develop also in the neolarynx where the effects of the reconstructive surgery, on speech and swallowing, are largely stabilized. The presence of arytenoid resection had significantly impacted on the occurrence of aspiration even if the overall number of dysphagic patients was not statistically significant compared to baseline.