title: Selective neck dissection: a review of the evidence.
abstract: The management of regional metastatic disease in patients with oral cancer is a topic of controversy. Comprehensive neck dissection has been the mainstay of treatment historically, but clinicians have sought alternatives to limit the morbidity of the classic radical neck dissection. This article will review evidence on the applicability of selective neck dissection in two settings: as primary treatment of the clinically positive neck and as salvage treatment of recurrent neck disease after radiotherapy. In the text, for each article cited we supply the level of evidence thereof according to the Oxford Centre for Evidence-based medicine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, 200 Hawkins Drive, 21200 PFP, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA. nitin-pagedar@uiowa.edu
authors.forename: Nitin A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Pagedar
authors.forename: Ralph W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Gilbert
mesh_terms: D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D009062:Mouth Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D037981:Neck Dissection / Q000379:methods*; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local / Q000532:radiotherapy / Q000556:secondary / Q000601:surgery*; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D011379:Prognosis; D016879:Salvage Therapy