Frey Syndrome, First Bite Syndrome, great auricular nerve morbidity, and quality of life following parotidectomy.
PURPOSE
Parotidectomy may be burdened by numerous complications that may worsen subjects' quality of life (QoL). These include paresis or paralysis of the facial nerve, face profile asymmetry, keloids, salivary fistula, Frey Syndrome (FS), First Bite Syndrome (FBS), and hypo-anaesthesia of the skin. This study is an effort to assess the incidence of complications following parotidectomy and their impact on subjects' QoL.


METHODS
Subjects undergoing parotidectomy for benign neoplasms from 2012 to 2015 were selected and invited to attend our outpatient clinic. After a brief anamnesis, the medical examiners tested their tactile perception and performed the Minor test for FS. Depending on the complications showed, subjects were asked to complete from 1 to 4 questionnaires about their QoL.


RESULTS
76 subjects completed the medical examination. The most frequent complication was the hypo-anaesthesia of the skin (71%). 21 subjects (28%) were positive to the Minor test, while 8 subjects (11%) reported FBS-compatible symptoms. Two subjects (3%) showed a facial nerve paralysis. Free abdominal fat graft was used in 16 subjects (21%) and it was associated with a lower incidence of FS. Surgery of the deep lobe of the parotid was associated with FBS.


CONCLUSIONS
FBS appears to have a greater influence on subjects' QoL than FS and hypo-anaesthesia of the skin. Moreover, this work confirms that surgery of the deep lobe of the parotid is a risk factor for developing FBS and the free abdominal fat graft is a reliable technique to prevent FS.
['Fiacchini|Giacomo|G|http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9832-4799', 'Cerchiai|Niccolò|N|', 'Tricò|Domenico|D|', 'Sellari-Franceschini|Stefano|S|', 'Casani|Augusto Pietro|AP|', 'Dallan|Iacopo|I|', 'Seccia|Veronica|V|']
D000328:Adult D000368:Aged D005158:Facial Paralysis D005260:Female D006801:Humans D015994:Incidence D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D009017:Morbidity D010306:Parotid Gland D011183:Postoperative Complications D011788:Quality of Life D012307:Risk Factors D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires D013547:Sweating, Gustatory D013577:Syndrome
Frey Syndrome First Bite Syndrome Great auricular nerve morbidity Quality of life Parotid surgery