Immediate reconstruction of soft palate defects after ablative surgery and evaluation of postoperative function: an analysis of 45 consecutive patients.

PURPOSE: The aim of the present study was to estimate the effect of different defect sizes and flaps used on the postoperative soft palate functional outcomes.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

The study included 45 consecutive patients who were treated by 3 different reconstructive flaps for their soft palate defect. Postoperative speech and swallowing functions were assessed to measure the relationships between the defect size and postoperative function of the soft palate, the different flap reconstructions, and postoperative function. The 1-way analysis of variance test was computed. P < .05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

The postoperative evaluation revealed that both speech and swallowing functions were normal or near normal in patients with type II defects, but they were poor in the patients with type III and IV defects. No significant changes in postoperative soft palate function using different flap sizes for the same defect type were found.

CONCLUSIONS

The study results have confirmed that the size of the defect, rather than the type of the flap, will have the most critical influence on soft palate postoperative function. A defect size of 50% or less will have a better outcome than defect sizes greater than 50%.