[Quality-of-life outcomes of the patients with tongue cancer following reconstruction with free forearm flap].

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the quality-of-life outcomes in patients with tongue cancer following reconstruction with free forearm flap.

METHODS

Quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes of 112 patients of tongue reconstruction with free forearm flap were assessed using University of Washington head and neck QOL questionnaire (UW-QOL). The QOL outcomes of the patients with different defect range and site were also compared.

RESULTS

The overall mean QOL scores of the 112 patients was 959.6, which reached about 80% (960/1200) of the overall score. The QOL scores of the patients with defects not more than 1/2 tongue (more than 1/3 tongue) were significantly higher than those with defects more than 1/2 tongue (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the QOL scores of the patients with and without tongue base defect (P > 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Free forearm flap is a good choice for tongue reconstruction and more suitable for the reconstruction of the defects not more than 1/2 tongue (more than 1/3 tongue).