Early oral feeding after total laryngectomy

Following total laryngectomy, 110 patients were orally fed on the first/second postoperative day without using a nasogastric (NG) tube. Pharyngo-cutaneous fistula was observed in 23 patients (21%) only nine of which (8%) needed surgical intervention to close the fistula. Early postoperative oral feeding of laryngectomized patients does not increase the fistula rate but decreases postoperative hospitalization time and eliminates the disadvantages of the NG tube.