Benefit of rehabilitation for patients with postoperative defects due to maxillofacial tumors

Background: This study aimed to demonstrate the usefulness of our rehabilitation program after extensive surgeries in patients with maxillofacial area (MFA) and neck tumors.Methods: Data from patients who underwent surgery in the clinics of the Republican Oncological Research Center and the Tashkent Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education for MFA and neck tumors were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were enrolled to our rehabilitation program, which consisted of a three-staged technique involving a complex prosthesis, and several physical therapies for damaged functions, such as chewing, swallowing, and breathing.Results: A total of 107 oncological patients with postsurgical defects were fitted with various types of prosthesis. The introduction of our rehabilitation program was performed at an interval between initial surgery and prosthesis formation of 10-15 days, and between initial surgery and preparation of the final prosthesis of 26–30 days. A restoration of the Karnofsky performance status to 80%–85% was observed.Conclusion: The present study demonstrates that our rehabilitation program is useful for shortening the postoperative convalescent period and improving the quality of life of patients with defects of the MFA and neck.