Risk Factors for Delayed Surgical Recovery and Massive Bleeding in Skull Base Surgery

Background: To determine factors that delay surgical recovery and increase intraoperative hemorrhage in skull base surgery. Methods: Factors related to delayed postoperative recovery were retrospectively reviewed in 33 patients who underwent open skull base surgery. Early and late recovery phases were assessed as “days required to walk around the ward (DWW)” and “length of hospital stay (LHS),” respectively. Intraoperative blood loss was cal­culated every hour and analyzed in 4 steps, i.e., craniotomy and intracranial manipulation, cranial fossa osteotomy, extracranial osteotomy, and reconstruction. Results: More than 4,000 mL of blood loss (B = 2.7392, Exp[B] = 15.4744; 95% CI 1.1828–202.4417) and comorbidi­ty (B = 2.3978, Exp[B]) = 10.9987; 95% CI 1.3534–98.3810) significantly prolonged the DWW; the occurrence of postoperative complications significantly delayed the LHS (p = 0.0316). Tumor invasion to the hard palate, the maxillary sinus, the pterygopalatine fossa, the base of the pterygoid process, the sphenoid sinus, the middle cranial fossa, and the cavernous sinus and a long operation time (>13 h) were associated with increased total hemorrhage. The optimal cut-off hemorrhage volume associated with total massive blood loss in craniotomy and intracranial manipulation (AUC = 0.8364), cranial fossa osteotomy (AUC = 0.8000), and extracranial osteotomy (AUC = 0.8545) was 1,111, 750, and 913 mL, respectively. Persistent infection (6%) and neuropsychiatric disorder (6%) are direct causes of delayed LHS. Conclusion: Blood loss, comorbidity, and postoperative complications were risk factors for delayed surgical recovery. Meticulous preoperative planning, intraoperative surefire hemostasis, and perioperative holistic management are prerequisites for safe skull base surgery.