title: Morbidity associated with removal of the submandibular gland.
abstract: Postoperative complications in 206 submandibular gland excisions, excluding those resulting from benign or malignant tumours, carried out during a 15-year period were reviewed. Most patients (62%) had sialolithiasis. Coexistence of sialolithiasis and nephrolithiasis was documented in 5.5% of cases. Early postoperative complications (particularly infection) developed in 14.6% of the cases, whereas late complications appeared in 25.3% of the cases (residual inflammation in Wharton's duct 7.3%). Neurological complications were observed in 16% of the cases. In 7 cases (3.4%) several nerves were involved and almost always the hypoglossal nerve. In 37.4% of the cases, these lesions resolved spontaneously in a mean period of 4 months. In those cases with a permanent neurological deficit, the facial nerve was the most often affected (7.7%) followed by the hypoglossal (2.9%) and the lingual nerve (1.4%). A single case of gustatory sweating (Frey's) syndrome was observed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School of Dentistry, University of Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Berini-Aytes
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gay-Escoda
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005154:Facial Nerve; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007002:Hypoglossal Nerve; D008036:Lingual Nerve; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009017:Morbidity; D010523:Peripheral Nervous System Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D015494:Salivary Gland Calculi / Q000601:surgery*; D013030:Spain; D013364:Submandibular Gland Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D013997:Time Factors