ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the safety and efficacy of microsurgery for glossopharyngeal neuralgia in aged patients by analyzing short-term and long-term follow-up outcomes.Methods Clinical data of 55 glossopharyngeal neuralgia patients treated with microsurgery were retrospectively analyzed.Among them,25 patients aged over 65 years were assigned into the observation group,and 30 patients under 65 years were assigned into the control group.Clinical characteristics,postoperative complications,short-term efficacy and long-term prognosis were compared between the two groups.Results There was a significant difference in the average age between the observation group and the control group[(71.88 ± 5.95) years vs.(52.57 ± 5.88)years,(t =12.052,P＜0.001)].The incidence of concomitant diseases was higher in the observation group than in the control group (56.0 ％ vs.13.3 ％,x2 =9.421,P =0.001).No significant difference was found in length of hospital stay or postoperative complications between the two groups(t =0.268,P=0.551;x2=0.068,P =0.562).There was no significant difference in short-and long-term prognosis at 1,3,6 months and 1 year after microsurgery (P ＞ 0.05).Conclusions Clinical characteristics,prognosis after microsurgery and surgery risks in aged glossopharyngeal neuralgia patients are comparable to those in younger glossopharyngeal neuralgia patients.Therefore,microsurgery is safe and effective in treating glossopharyngeal neuralgia in aged patients and should be encouraged in clinical practice.