[Analysis of risk factors for delirium in elderly patients with head and neck cancer after free flap reconstruction surgery].

Objective: To investigate the risk factors for delirium after free flap reconstruction surgery in elderly patients with head and neck cancer. Methods: This study retrospectively collected clinical data from 309 elderly patients with head and neck cancer who underwent radical resection and free flap reconstruction surgery in the Department of Operation & Anesthesiology, College & Hospital of Stomatology, Guangxi Medical University from January 2018 to December 2022. Among them, there were 197 males (63.8%) and 112 females (36.2%), with an average age of (66.8±5.5) years old. Based on the delirium diagnostic criteria outlined in the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, patients were evaluated for postoperative delirium within one week after surgery. They were then divided into a delirium group (n=75) and a non-delirium group (n=234). Perioperative indicators potentially related to postoperative delirium, including age, gender, past medical history, tumor characteristics, hematological tests, perioperative sleep disturbances, surgical procedures, intraoperative fluid intake and output, anesthetic dosage, postoperative pain, etc, were collected from the relevant medical record system.Variables with P<0.05 were included in a multivariate Logistic regression model to screen for independent risk factors for delirium. Results: The incidence of delirium after free flap reconstruction surgery for head and neck cancer in elderly patients was 24.3% (75/309). Multivariate Logistic regression analysis showed that male gender (OR=2.802, P=0.005), perioperative sleep disturbances (OR=7.104, P<0.001), and moderate-to-severe postoperative pain (OR=6.903, P<0.001) were risk factors for postoperative delirium. Conclusions: Male gender, perioperative sleep disturbances, and moderate-to-severe postoperative pain are independent risk factors for delirium in these patients.