Long-term follow up outcomes of surgical resection of Shamblin II/III carotid body tumor: a single center analysis

Objective To evaluate the correlation between tumor size and surgical outcomes of Shamblin Ⅱ/Ⅲ carotid body tumor (CBT) and the prognosis. Methods From Apr 2011 to Dec 2017, 88 patients with Shamblin Ⅱ and Ⅲ CBTs undergoing tumor resection were retrospectively analyzed. The long-term prognosis of surgical resection was also evaluated. Results One patient died of multi-organ failure postoperatively, two patients abandoned surgery. The perioperative mortality was 1%. 85 patients having 87 lesions successfully resected were analyzed. There were 13 Shamblin Ⅱ and 74 Shamblin Ⅲ CBTs resection. Two patients had bilateral CBTs resection. The median of tumor size, procedural blood loss, procedural time, and length of hospital stay was 3.0 (1.2-5.5) cm, 200 (0-2 500) ml, 162 (85-430) min, and 10 (6-28) d, respectively. Seventy-two patients had carotid vascular intervention during the procedure, and thirty-three patients had neurological complications after the procedure. Correlation analysis showed that the tumor size had positive relationship with blood loss (Spearman R=0.35, P<0.01) and procedural time (Spearman R= 0.54, P<0.01). Tumor size was positively associated with the risk of cranial neurological complication (OR=1.72, 95% CI 1.08-2.73, P=0.02) and carotid vascular intervention (OR=2.69, 95% CI 1.27-5.69, P=0.01). There were four patients who were diagnosed with malignant CBT due to the metastasis. Three suffered CBT recurrence after 1, 5, and 7 years during the follow up. Conclusions Shamblin Ⅱ or Ⅲ CBTs should be intervened as early as possible to facilitate the surgical resection, as well as to reduce the risk of carotid vascular and neurological complications. Key words: Carotid body tumor; Vascular surgical procedures; Postoperative complications