Transdermal scopolamine for the prevention of a salivary fistula after parotidectomy

Our aim was to investigate whether perioperative transdermal application of scopolamine could help to prevent fistulas after parotidectomy, and to this end we retrospectively studied the records of all patients (n = 645) who had benign parotid tumours treated by partial parotidectomy between 2011 and 2016. We found that scopolamine led to a significant decrease in the incidence of salivary fistulas from 54/371(15%) in the group not given it to 10/274 (4%) in the group given it (p < 0.0001). The “number needed to treat” was 9.17. There was a relatively low incidence of all adverse effects after scopolamine. Our results are encouraging. Thorough consideration of the contraindications and a knowledge of the potential adverse effects are crucial for its successful implementation.