EXTRACAPSULAR DISSECTION AND LIMITED PAROTIDECTOMY

Parotid surgery has evolved over the last century. Many of the long-held principles have been questioned and consequently modified. The basic tenets of parotid surgery for benign disease have been identifying and preserving the facial nerve and complete excision of the tumor with an adequate cuff of normal tissue. This can be safely accomplished by extracapsular dissection or limited/partial parotidectomy. Extracapsular dissection implies no attempt at finding the facial nerve, while limited or partial parotidectomy includes finding one (or more) branch of the facial nerve and then dissecting that branch in a retrograde fashion.