To analyze risk factors for short-term and long-term facial nerve function after acoustic neuroma surgery.

Sixty-two patients with acoustic neuroma admitted to Neurosurgery Department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Xiamen University from January 2015 to June 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. The facial nerve function of all patients was evaluated at 7 d and 6 months after surgery. The risk factors that may be related to the short-term and long-term facial nerve dysfunction were collected. The relationship between the related factors and the short-term and long-term facial nerve function was analyzed by Logistic regression.

Seven days after surgery, 21 patients (33.9%) had normal facial nerve function, 41 patients (66.1%) had facial nerve function impairment; 6 months after surgery, 49 patients (79.0%) had normal facial nerve function, and 13 patients (21.0%) had facial nerve function impairment. Logistic univariate regression analysis showed that the larger the maximum diameter of the tumor and the tighter adhesion between tumor and facial nerve, the greater the possibility of facial nerve function nerve injury occurred 7 d after surgery (P=0.002, 0.002); the duration of clinical symptoms before surgery was the risk factor of facial nerve dysfunction 6 months after surgery (P=0.035). Logistic multivariate regression analysis showed that the degree of adhesion between the tumor and the facial nerve and the maximum tumor diameter were the independent risk factors for facial nerve dysfunction 7 d after surgery (P=0.003, 0.014); the duration of clinical symptoms before surgery and the maximum diameter of tumor were the independent risk factors of facial nerve dysfunction 6 months after surgery (P=0.010, 0.030).

The tighter the adhesion between the tumor and the facial nerve and the larger the maximum diameter of the tumor, the greater the possibility of facial nerve function injury occurred 7 d after surgery. The longer the duration of clinical symptoms and the larger the maximum diameter of tumor, the greater the possibility of facial nerve injury 6 months after surgery.