Objective: Through analysis of surgical treatment and repair methods for the skull base lesions, to summarize the type, sites, characters of the lesions and the methods of surgical treatment and repair, and to provide the beneficial experience for the surgeons.
Methods: Four hundred and thirty patients were hospitalized and treated surgically between Feb. 1982 and Dec, 2002, and their clinical data were analyzed.
Results: Of 430 patients, 265 (61.6%) were male, 165 (38.4%) female. The mean age was 36. 1 years old (range from 2.5 to 76.0). In 173 cases (40.2%), the lesions were on the left side of the skull base, 178 cases (41.4%) on the right, 79 cases (18.4%) involving the central and both side of the skull base. In 116 cases (27.0%), the lesions were located in anterior skull base, 57 (13.3%) in central, 174 (40.5%) in lateral and posterior, and the remainder 83 cases (19.5%) in two or more regions. Of 430 cases, 283 (65.8%) were tumors, among them, 154 (35.8%) were benign, 129 (30.0%) malignant, 76 (17.7%) trauma, 42 (9.8%) congenital, 18 (4.2%) infection, 11 (2.6%) unknown. All patients were surgically treated. Of them, 43 cases were treated for 2 times, 5 cases for 3 times, 4 for 4 times, 1 for 5 times, 3 for 6 times. The total were 514 times. The bone defect was reconstructed in 95 cases (22.1%). The dura mater was repaired in 117 cases (27.2%). The postoperative complications occurred in 27 cases. Two cases died in 2 and 3 days after operation because of brain hernia with the ligation of common carotid artery and internal carotid artery for artery rupture. No death occurred during operation.
Conclusions: The majority of the skull base lesions were tumors. The male patients were more than female. Appropriate surgical approach and better perioperative treatment could harvest the satisfactory effect.