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Results from this study suggest that the harmonic scalpel can reduce blood loss during SND for HNSCC. The harmonic scalpel had no impact on operative time, postoperative drain output, or complication rate.

Importance?Scalp reconstructions may be required after tumor resection or trauma. The inherent anatomy of the scalp presents challenges and may limit reconstructive options. Objective?To describe and investigate the scalp rotation flap as a reconstructive technique for complex soft tissue defects. Design?Retrospective case series with a mean follow-up of 13 months. Setting?Tertiary academic center. Participants?A total of 22 patients with large scalp soft tissue defects undergoing scalp rotation flap reconstruction. Interventions?The flap is designed adjacent to the defect and elevated in the subgaleal plane. The flap is rotated into the defect, and a split-thickness skin graft is placed over the donor site periosteum. Main Outcomes and Measure?Data points collected included defect size, operative time, hospital stay, and patient satisfaction with cosmetic outcome. Results?Mean patient age was 71 years. Mean American Society of Anesthesiologist classification was 2.8. Mean defect size was 41 cm2 (range: 7.8?120 cm2), and 19 of 22 defects resulted from a neoplasm resection. Mean operative time was 181 minutes, and mean hospital stay was 2.4 days. There were no intraoperative complications. Three patients with previous radiation therapy had distal flap necrosis. Twenty-one patients (95%) reported an acceptable cosmetic result. Conclusions and Relevance?The scalp rotation flap is an efficient and reliable option for reconstructing complex soft tissue defects. This can be particularly important in patients with significant medical comorbidities who cannot tolerate a lengthy operative procedure.

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IMPORTANCE Melanoma is one of the most common cancers worldwide, typically diagnosed in older adults. There is an increasing incidence in the younger population (age Յ40 years) in America. In addition, approximately 1 in 5 cases of melanoma affect the head and neck. However, there are limited data on the incidence of head and neck melanoma in the pediatric, adolescent, and young adult population in North America (United States and Canada).OBJECTIVE To assess 20-year demographic and incidence changes associated with head and neck melanoma in the pediatric, adolescent, and young adult population in North America. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTSA descriptive analysis of retrospective data on head and neck melanoma from the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries' Cancer in North America public use data set from 1995 to 2014 was conducted. The data set currently includes 93% of the United States and 64% of the Canadian populations. Eligible data were from 12 462 pediatric, adolescent, and young adult patients (aged 0-39 years) with a confirmed diagnosis of melanoma (International Classification of Diseases-Oncology 3 histologic types 8720-8790) in primary head and neck sites: skin of lip, not otherwise specified (C44.0); eyelid (C44.1); external ear (C44.2); skin of other/unspecified parts of face (C44.3); and skin of scalp and neck (C44.4). The study was conducted from January 26 to July 21, 2019. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESLog-linear regression was used to estimate annual percentage change in age-adjusted incidence rates (AAIRs) of head and neck melanoma. RESULTSOf the 12 462 patients with head and neck melanoma included in the study, 6810 were male (54.6%). The AAIR was 0.51 per 100 000 persons (95% CI, 0.50-0.52 per 100 000 persons). In North America, the incidence of head and neck melanoma increased by 51.1% from 1995 to 2014. The rate was higher in the United States (AAIR, 0.52; 95% CI, 0.51-0.53 per 100 000 person-years) than Canada (AAIR, 0.43; 95% CI, 0.40-0.45 per 100 000 persons). In the United States, the incidence increased 4.68% yearly from 1995 to 2000 and 1.15% yearly from 2000 to 2014. In Canada, the incidence increased 2.18% yearly from 1995 to 2014. Male sex (AAIR, 0.55; 95% CI, 0.54-0.57 per 100 000 persons), older age (AAIR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.79-0.80 per 100 000 persons), and non-Hispanic white race/ethnicity (AAIR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.77-0.80 per 100 000 persons) were associated with an increased incidence of head and neck melanoma. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCEThe incidence of pediatric, adolescent, and young adult head and neck melanoma in North America appears to have increased by 51.1% in the past 2 decades, with males aged 15 to 39 years the main cohort associated with the increase.