TY  - JOUR
A1  - Hackenberg, Stephan
A1  - Meyer, Till Jasper
A1  - Häfner, Johannes
A1  - Scheich, Matthias
A1  - Stöth, Manuel
A1  - Al-Tinawi, Fadi
A1  - Neun, Tilmann
A1  - Mlynski, Robert
A1  - Hagen, Rudolf
A1  - Scherzad, Agmal
T1  - Surgical management of tympanojugular paragangliomas using the flexible CO\(_2\) laser
JF  - European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology
N2  - Purpose
Surgery is a standard therapy for tympanojugular paragangliomas (TJP). Maintaining the quality of life (QoL) requires functional preservation. The flexible CO\(_2\) laser allows contact-free tumor removal. This retrospective study compares the postoperative functional outcomes of TJP surgery with and without the flexible CO\(_2\) laser.

Methods
Between 2005 and 2019, 51 patients with TJP were surgically treated at a tertiary hospital. Until 2012, 17 patients received conventional surgery. Thereafter, the flexible laser was used in 34 patients. Tumor extend, pre- and postoperative cranial nerve function, and complications were compared between the groups.

Results
The cohort consisted of 33 class A and B tumors and 18 class C and D tumors. Preoperative embolization was performed in 17 cases. Class C/D TJP were usually removed via an infratemporal fossa type A approach. Gross total tumor removal was achieved in 14/18 class C/D tumors. 3/51 patients suffered from long-term partial or complete facial palsy. No differences in post-therapeutic cranial nerve function or complications were noted between the conventional and laser group. One recurrence was observed after complete tumor resection.

Conclusion
The flexible CO\(_2\) laser was shown to be a safe and effective alternative to conventional bipolar cauterization, which is appreciated by the surgeon in these highly vascularized tumors. Both techniques allowed a high tumor control rate and good long-term results also from a functional point of view.
KW  - tympanojugular paraganglioma
KW  - tympanic paraganglioma
KW  - jugular paraganglioma
KW  - surgical management of paraganglioma
KW  - laser surgery
KW  - flexible CO2 laser
Y1  - 2022
U6  - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-324164
VL  - 279
IS  - 12
ER  -