Radiation-induced Trismus and Related Measures of Patient Life Quality | Chapter 2 | Current Innovations in Medicine and Medical Science Vol. 2

 Radiation therapy (RT) and concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CCRT), with or without surgery, are the established current standard treatment modalities for patients with head and neck cancers (HNC). Radiation-induced trismus (RIT), a serious side effect of RT or CCRT, can affect 5% to 69% of HNC patients, depending on the primary tumor, its spread to neighboring tissues, and the stage of the disease. RIT is typically described as having a maximum mouth opening of ≤ 35, which can manifest as early as three months of therapy or as late as 12 to 48 months after RT or CCRT. The victims of RIT may experience considerable negative impacts on their quality of life (QoL) measurement domains of everyday activities, speech, chewing, eating, drinking, malnutrition, dehydration, halitosis, oral hygiene, pain, aesthetic appearance, emotional, sexual and economic. Given the underappreciated nature of RIT and its detrimental effects in HNC patients undergoing RT or C-CRT, the goal of this chapter was to provide a concise review of the physical, social, emotional, sexual, and economic implications of RIT and their impact on QoL measures, as well as the available evaluation methods for health professionals working in related medical fields.

Author(s) Details:

Efsun Somay,
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, Baskent University, Ankara, Turkey.

Busra Yilmaz,
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Baskent University, Ankara, Turkey.

Erkan Topkan,
Department of Radiation Oncology, Faculty of Medicine, Baskent University, Adana, Turkey.

Ahmet Kucuk,
Department of Radiation Oncology, Mersin City Hospital, Mersin, Turkey.

Berrin Pehlivan,
Department of Radiation Oncology, Bahcesehir University, Istanbul, Turkey.

Ugur Selek,
Department of Radiation Oncology, School of Medicine, Koc University, Istanbul, Turkey and  Department of Radiation Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, TX, USA.

Please see the link here: https://stm.bookpi.org/CIMMS-V2/article/view/8215