Intraoperative Surgical Complications in Transoral Laser CO2 Microsurgery of the Larynx: An Observational, Prospective, Single-Center Study

Abstract

Introduction: Despite good outcomes of CO2 laser of the larynx, a lack of prospective data related to intraoperative complications in the indexed literature is evident. Materials and Methods: An observational, prospective, nonrandomized study. Results: One hundred and twenty-eight patients met the inclusion criteria. The total rate of intraoperative complications was 14.8% (19/128). The rate of complications according to anatomical location was 7 (38.8%) of 18 for supraglottic tumors and 11 (10.3%) of 107 for glottic tumors, and 1 (33.3%) of 3 for subglottic tumors (P =.001). We do not found difference in complications according to severity (minor vs major complication). Conclusion: Previous studies reported good oncologic outcomes and low complication rates with CO2 transoral laser microsurgery (TOLMS) compared to traditional open surgery. However, it is important to consider the different intraoperative surgical, major and minor complications related to CO2 TOLMS and discuss this with our patients during the preoperative assessment, especially in those patients who need a supraglottic tumor resection.