Parotid Duct Repair by Facial Vein Graft versus Gore-Tex, A Sialographic Evaluation

STATEMENT OF PROBLEM The most common method for parotid duct anastomosis is suturing. A ductal defect of greater than 1cm may prevent a direct anastomosis. PURPOSE The goal of this study was a sialographic evaluation to compare repairing a parotid duct with facial vein graft versus Gore-Tex tub in 19 dogs. MATERIAL AND METHODS Nineteen dogs were studied in this experimental trial. Extra oral transverse incisions were made in buccal regions bilaterally to expose parotid ducts and a defect (2 cm) was performed in similar areas (right and left). The right resected duct was repaired with facial vein graft and the left anastomosis was performed by using the Gore-Tex tube microscopically. Sialography was used to evaluate the ductal leakage. Statistical analysis was performed, using SPSS software and McNemar's test. RESULTS Based on the sialography evaluation; the ductal leakage was seen in five cases (26.31%) on the right side and in seven cases (36.84%) in the left side. Statistical analysis using McNemar's test suggested no statistically significant difference between ductal leakages in right and left parotid ducts (p> 0.05). CONCLUSION The results of this study suggest that the efficacies of Gore-Tex tube and vein graft in parotid duct anastomosis are similar, but the use of Gore-Tex tube had a number of advantages, including reduced morbidity of the graft and short operation time.