The earlier, the better: The beneficial effect of different timepoints of the preoperative transarterial embolization on ameliorating operative blood loss and operative time for carotid body tumors

Abstract Background To explore the effect of the optimal time interval from preoperative transarterial embolization to surgery of carotid body tumors by analyzing surgery-related indicators. Methods This single-center retrospective review included 103 patients and 108 carotid body tumor resections performed between June 2010 and June 2020. All carotid body tumors were divided into three groups based on interval time between transarterial embolization and surgery: 1-day group (G1), 2-day group (G2), and 3-day group (G3). Demographics, inflammatory biomarkers, periprocedural details, and postoperative outcomes were analyzed. Results Among 103 patients, 48.54% were women, and the mean age was 37.07 years. The tumor sizes were 43.83, 44.31, and 42.84 mm in G1, G2, and G3, respectively, and the blood loss and operative time were 163.68, 331.54, and 683.68 mL, and 182.32, 216.31, and 280.79 mins with the prolonged time interval, respectively. Compared with pretransarterial embolization, the expression of white blood cells (109/L) and neutrophils (109/L) were obviously increased post-transarterial embolization in the three groups (G1: white blood cells 6.81 vs 9.32; neutrophils 0.54 vs 0.74, all P Conclusion The optimal time interval between preoperative transarterial embolization and surgical resection resulted as 1 day as patients in this group showed obvious lower blood loss and shorter duration of operation than patients in other groups. Both inflammation and recanalization provided support for these results at some extent.