Outcome of retrograde facial nerve dissection in superficial parotidectomy

Background: Using retrograde dissection for doing parotidectomy is technically easier avoiding injury to the facial nerve trunk or other branches. The goal is to remove just the part of the parotid gland where the tumor is. This method can lead shorter surgery times and less blood loss. Plus, it doesn’t add extra risk for facial nerve damage. Aims and Objectives: Is to observe the results of Retrograde Facial Nerve Dissection during Superficial Parotidectomy at our institution. Materials and Methods: The study is a clinical observational study comprises of 30 patients attending the outpatient department of General surgery, VIMSAR Burla, Sambalpur between November 2019 to October 2021. The data collected from all the 30 patients after taking the due consent and were evaluated to determine the various intra and post op complication, average duration of surgery, average blood loss and the importance of soft tissue markers for identification of facial nerve. Results: In our study Male to Female ratio is 10:20 i.e., 1:2 with Prevalence of disease is more between the age group 45-55. Maximum 16 cases presented within 1.5 yr. duration of swelling presentation. Mean duration of surgery is 88 minutes with Standard deviation 5.5 and Mean blood loss 68.34ml with Standard deviation 8.34. No significant intra operative complication noted. Out of 30 patients 23 patients did not develop any complications. Four patients showed temporary weakness in their facial nerves, and three had wound infections. Conclusion: Our study suggests that Retrograde Facial Nerve Dissection for Superficial Parotidectomy is easy to do with fewer complications. This technique take short surgical time and minimal blood loss with keeping the risk of facial nerve injury low. It’s especially useful when finding the nerve directly is difficult.