Changing trends in the epidemiology and surgical treatment of benign parotid gland tumours: a 10-year retrospective comparison in a tertiary referral centre of southeast Bavaria

Abstract Background Benign salivary gland tumors are in general rare. Pleomorphic adenomas (PA) and Warthin’s tumors (WT) make up to 90% of these tumors. Their epidemiology shows significant regional differences but also changes over time. In addition to that, new developments in the surgical approach, like extracapsular dissection (ED), have been introduced. Methods We retrospectively analyzed epidemiological and clinical data of 347 patients (184 male and 163 female) treated in the ENT-Department of the University Hospital of Regensburg in 2010/11 and 2020/21 and assessed their changes over time. Results WT is by far the most common benign tumor of the parotid gland, followed by PA and the age of diagnosis shows an increasing tendency. The hospitalization time showed a significant reduction after a period of ten years. Patients treated with ED are being hospitalized for a shorter period of time. Regular smokers tend to present more WT and are being diagnosed at younger age. Patients with WT have a higher body mass index (BMI) than other patients. Conclusions Over the last decade, WT remained the most common benign parotid tumor in Southeast Bavaria, while the implementation of ED has potentially impacted clinical resource utilization coincide with reduced duration of inpatient hospitalization.