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Pitfalls in the management of preauricular sinuses
A R Currie1, W W King, A C Vlantis
1Department of Surgery, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong.
Abstract:
A total of 159 operations for the excision of a preauricular sinus carried out in 117 patients over an 8-year period were reviewed. Previous excision, the use of a probe to delineate the sinus and operating under local anaesthesia all increased the chance of recurrence. The condition recurred more often in patients who developed post-operative wound sepsis than in those who healed primarily. Means of decreasing the recurrence rate include: (1) meticulous dissection of the sinus by an experienced head and neck surgeon under general anaesthesia; (2) the use of an extended preauricular incision; (3) clearance down to the temporalis fascia to ensure complete removal of all epithelial components; (4) avoidance of sinus rupture; and (5) closure of wound dead space.
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