Effectiveness of narrow band imaging in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma after treatment.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the effectiveness of narrow band imaging (NBI) in patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) after treatment. METHODS: In all, 101 consecutive OSCC patients underwent NBI examination for posttreatment follow-up. Four patients had local recurrence. Twenty-six second primary malignancies were found in 18 patients; 6 patients (33%) had more than 1 lesion. Seventeen lesions (65%) were carcinoma in situ or severe dysplasia. Most of them occurred in the oral cavity (77%). RESULTS: A higher incidence (18% vs 9%, p = .037) and less-advanced stage (4% vs 37%, p = .0005) of second primary malignancies were found among the NBI group compared with a previous cohort without NBI examination, and fewer patients needed postoperative adjuvant therapy (12% vs 50%, p = .0005). CONCLUSIONS: NBI is an effective method to identify early lesions in the head and neck area, especially the oral cavity, among patients with OSCC after treatment.