Cost comparison of the sentinel lymph node biopsy procedure in the modalities: general anesthesia with hospitalization x local anesthesia and intravenous sedation in a day hospital

Background: Lentigo maligna (LM) and lentigo maligna melanoma are often located on the face and other chronically sun exposed regions of the skin.Limited data exists on post-operative complications following wide local excision (WLE) of LM/LMM.Assessing complications is crucial for optimizing outcomes when selecting between surgical or alternative therapies, considering tumor localization, patient age, comorbidities, and individual preferences.Methods: Retrospective single-center study of complications following WLE with a margin of 5 mm to 2 cm, of 399 LM/LMM in 360 patients over a 20-year period.To determine the frequency of complications after WLE for LM/ LMM and patient risk factors.Results: LM and LMM were primarily located in the head and neck region (62.7% and 51.9% respectively) at a median patient age of 72 years.Complications occurred in 8.1% of 149 WLE procedures for LM/LMM lesions, more frequently in LM (8.7%) than LMM (6.7%, P=0.05), including wound infection (2.7%), dehiscence (2.0%), and hemorrhage (1.3%).No life-threatening or severe complications occurred, and patient characteristics were not independent prognostic risk factors. Conclusions:In a minority of LM/LMM cases (8.1%), WLE resulted in post-operative complications, mainly wound infection, wound dehiscence, and hemorrhage.