Endoscopic sequestrectomy for skull base osteoradionecrosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients: a 10-year experience

BackgroundSkull base osteoradionecrosis is a devastating post-irradiation complication in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients. We conducted a retrospective analysis to assess the long-term survival and prognostic factors of patients with skull base osteoradionecrosis treated with endoscopic sequestrectomy.MethodsWe enrolled 59 nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with skull base osteoradionecrosis who underwent endoscopic nasopharyngectomy. The clinical characteristics and outcome at the last follow-up visit were collected. The survival curve and univariate and multivariate survival analysis were analyzed by Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazards model to analyze the potential prognostic factors of overall survival, including age, gender, number of radiation, number of operations, extension of disease (local or extensive), whether the ICA is exposed to the procedure (yes or no) and the hypha status (yes or no) at postoperative pathological examination.ResultsThe predilection sites of skull base osteoradionecrosis in osteoradionecrosis patients are as follows: the base of the sphenoid bone and sphenoid sinus region, the clivus and petrous apex region including the internal carotid canal and the pterygoid process region (including its medial and lateral pterygoid plates). After surgery, clinical symptoms were alleviated in most patients to varying degrees. By the last follow-up visit, 26 patients had died. Most deaths (24) in the study occurred during the first 2years. Most patients (24) died of sudden severe hemorrhage. The follow-up period ranged from 1 to 108months, with a median of 27months. The 2-year overall survival rate was 54.2%. Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that the number of radiation (P=0.026) and age (P=0.002) were independent risk factors for the overall survival.ConclusionsEndoscopic sequestrectomy with minimal complications and clear vision is a valuable option for the therapy of skull base osteoradionecrosis in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients.