Postoperative Chyle Leak Rate Following Neck Dissection for Squamous Cell Carcinoma Versus Papillary Thyroid Cancer

Compare the rates of post-operative chyle leak following therapeutic lateral neck dissection during treatment of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) versus squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the head and neck.

A retrospective analysis of 226 consecutive neck dissections in 201 patients who underwent therapeutic neck dissection involving at least levels II-IV with a final pathologic diagnosis of mucosal SCC of the head and neck or PTC from 2010 to 2020. Specific cases of chyle leak were reviewed. Surgical factors associated with chyle leak were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. Duration of chyle leak was assessed by the Kaplan-Meier curve, and time-to-resolution was analyzed by Cox proportional hazard analysis.

Postoperative chyle leak was encountered in 15 (6.6%) neck dissections, eight (12.3%) in PTC, and seven (4.3%) in SCC. High-volume chyle leak and chyle leak requiring operative intervention were only encountered in neck dissections performed for PTC. Chyle leak was significantly associated with PTC on univariable analysis (OR 3.08, p = 0.037), but not on multivariable analysis (OR 1.35, p = 0.711). High-volume chyle leak and the need for operative intervention were associated only with PTC patients (OR 23.6, p = 0.006; OR 18.09, p = 0.023 respectively). Median duration of chyle leak was 12.1 days among patients with SCC, and 20.5 days among patients with PTC (p = 0.089).

Among 201 patients undergoing therapeutic neck dissection, chyle leak was associated with PTC pathology on univariable but not multivariable analysis. However, high-volume leaks and leaks requiring operative intervention only occurred among patients with PTC.

level III Laryngoscope, 133:2959-2964, 2023.