%0 Journal Article
%T Sarcoma Excision and Pattern of Complicating Sensory Neuropathy
%A Neil R. Wickramasinghe
%A Nicholas D. Clement
%A Ashish Singh
%A Daniel E. Porter
%J ISRN Oncology
%D 2014
%R 10.1155/2014/168698
%X A potential complication of sarcoma excision surgery is a sensory neurological dysfunction around the surgical scar. This study utilised both objective and subjective sensation assessment modalities, to evaluate 22 patients after sarcoma surgery, for a sensory deficit. 93% had an objective sensory deficit. Light touch is less likely to be damaged than pinprick sensation, and two-point discrimination is significantly reduced around the scar. Results also show that an increased scar size leads to an increased light touch and pinprick deficit and that two-point discriminatory ability around the scar improves as time after surgery elapses. 91% had a subjective deficit, most likely tingling or pain, and numbness was most probable with lower limb sarcomas. Results also demonstrated that there were no significant relationships between any specific subjective and objective deficits. In conclusion, sensory disturbance after sarcoma surgery is common and debilitating. Efforts to minimize scar length are paramount in the prevention of sensory deficit. Sensation may also recover to an extent; thus, sensory reeducation techniques must become an integral aspect of management plans. Finally to obtain a comprehensive assessment of sensory function, both objective and subjective assessment techniques must be utilised. 1. Introduction Sarcomas are rare mesenchymal malignancies originating in supportive/connective body tissues including muscle; neural, cartilaginous, vascular, and adipose tissue; and bone [1¨C6]. There are approximately 3200 sarcomas diagnosed in the UK each year [7]; they account for 1% of malignant neoplasms in adults and 10% in children [8]. Although sarcomas are infrequent neoplastic manifestations [9], they impact substantially on mortality (50% 5-year survival) [10, 11]. The majority (60%) of sarcomas originate peripherally, 15% affect the head/neck/external trunk, and the remainder are in the retroperitoneal abdomen [12]. In the 1970s, amputation was the cornerstone of sarcoma management. Presently, limb salvage surgery is often preferential [13]; this surgical modification along with contemporary furtherance in imaging, biomedical engineering, and the advent of adjuvant chemotherapy has greatly improved survival [12, 14, 15]. With improved survival rates, complications of sarcoma management afflict all aspects of a patient¡¯s health for longer [16]. A frequently overlooked complication of sarcoma surgery is neurological (specifically sensory) impairment. As many as 73% of patients have developed a new subjective neural impairment after tumour
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.oncology/2014/168698/