Introduction: The short-term adverse events and predictors of morbidity in surgical resection of esthesioneuroblastoma (ENB) are largely unknown, and investigating these variables can help direct planning for at-risk patients.
Methods: The 2005-2017 National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was queried to identify patients with a diagnosis of ENB undergoing skull base surgery for tumor resection. Information regarding demographics, patient morbidity score, pre-operative and intra-operative data, and post-operative outcomes were extracted. Cox proportional hazard analysis was utilized to assess complication and readmission/reoperation rates.
Results: A total of 95 patients undergoing skull base surgery for resection of ENB were included. Mean age, BMI, operation time, and post-operative length of stay (LOS) of the cohort were 53.6 ± 16.2 years, 29.1 ± 6.5, 392.0 ± 204.6 minutes, and 5.8 ± 4.6 days, respectively. In total, 31 patients (32.6%) experienced at least one 30-day adverse event, which included blood transfusion intra-operatively or within 72 hours from the operation (22.1%), readmission (10.7%), intubation >48 hours (7.4%), reintubation (4.2%), organ or space infection (4.2%), reoperation (4.0%), superficial or deep surgical site infection (2.1%), sepsis (2.1%), pulmonary embolism (1.1%), and myocardial infarction (1.1%). Patients who experienced at least one adverse event had significantly higher operation time (486.8 ± 230.4 vs. 347.5 ± 176.2 minutes, p = 0.002), LOS (9.2 ± 5.6 days vs. 4.2 ± 3.0, p < 0.001), and lower hematocrit (37.3 ± 5.9 vs. 41.2 ± 3.8, p < 0.001) and albumin levels (3.8 ± 0.6 vs. 4.2 ± 0.3, p = 0.009). Patients with a higher American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score (HR = 2.39; p = 0.047) or longer operation time (HR = 1.004; p = 0.001) had a significantly higher risk for experiencing adverse events. Obesity was not associated with different intra- or post-operative outcomes, but older patients had shorter operations (p = 0.002) and LOS (p = 0.0014).
Conclusion: Longer operation time and lower pre-operative hematocrit and albumin levels may all increase complication rates in ENB resection. Patients with high ASA score or more advanced age may have different short-term outcomes.
Keywords: National Surgical Quality Improvement Program; esthesioneuroblastoma; morbidity and mortality; olfactory neuroblastoma.