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Multicenter prospective study on the use and outcome of rehabilitation after total laryngectomy in Germany
Author(s) -
Singer Susanne,
Vogel HansJoachim,
GuntinasLichius Orlando,
ErdmannReusch Bianca,
Fuchs Michael,
Taylor Katherine,
Meyer Alexandra,
Keszte Judith
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.25540
Subject(s) - rehabilitation , laryngectomy , medicine , odds , odds ratio , physical therapy , surgery , logistic regression , larynx , pathology
Background The purpose of this study was to assess the use and outcome of rehabilitation after total laryngectomy in Germany. Methods We enrolled patients who were scheduled for total laryngectomy, approached them again after surgery, after 3 months and 1 year. Patients completed questionnaires and were interviewed. Results Of 309 participants, 14% had not received any rehabilitation. Reasons for nonuse were primarily ongoing treatment and poor health. Users of rehabilitation had 4 times the odds of attaining any ability to speak compared to nonusers (odds ratio 3.8, P = .02). The main aim of rehabilitation from the perspective of the users was speech rehabilitation, mentioned by 71% before starting rehabilitation. This was also what most users (27%) found the most helpful part of rehabilitation. Conclusions Patients are interested in attending rehabilitation. They especially want to improve their speech capacity, which indeed is better among users of rehabilitation than in those without.