Imaging studies of organ and tissue alterations of disease and healthy side following unilateral surgery of head and neck

The purpose of this study is to obtain the objective, temporal two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) imaging data concerning the organ and tissue alterations following unilateral surgery of the neck in patients with cancers in oral cavity. Phantom study was first performed for determining the accuracy and reproducibility of measurement with CT machine, GE LightSpeed QX/i, and the area in problem was measured through the workstation Advantage Windows (GE), and the volume, by the equation, area x slice thicknesses. Contrast-enhanced CT was performed in 80 patients (M 50, F 30, median age 65 y) with cancers of tongue (34 cases), gingiva of lower (19) and upper (6) jaw, buccal mucosa (7), mouth bottom (4), soft palate (4) and other (6), before and after the surgical treatment of lymphadenectomy and other tissue extirpation needed. Measured were the area of cross section of the bilateral internal and external jugular veins, area and imaging rate of sternocleidomastoid muscle, and volume and the rate change of submandibular gland in the healthy side. Patients had the treatment of the surgery alone (34 cases), surgery + chemotherapy (25), surgery + radiotherapy (15) or their 3 combinations (11). Results suggested that the unilateral surgery yielded the compensatory or discarding alteration in bilateral organs and tissues of the neck. (T.I.)