ABSTRACT
The authors report their experience about the surgical treatment of drooling in handicapped children. They operated on twelve patients suffering from cerebral palsy, ranging from eleven to nineteen years of age. The procedure included the posterior rerouting of parotid ducts to the anterior pillars as in the Wilkie's operation but with tubularization of the mucosal flaps. The excision of the distal part of the submandibular duct on both sides was performed in a second operation, one to five years later in four patients, but in the initial operation for the last six cases. A successful control of drooling was reached in ten patients. But the two parts of the procedure are necessary to get a good result. The only first part is always insufficient as in the other two cases. There were few complications: one salivary cyst after rerouting of a parotid duct which required marsupialization, another one with spontaneous regression. Only one patient is complaining of feeling an excessive dryness of his mouth and lips. Other methods of treatment: physiotherapy and different kinds of surgical procedures are recalled. However, this series is too short to permit a valid conclusion and to define the place of the procedure in the treatment of drooling.
