Adverse post-operative events of salivary gland biopsies: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objectives The study aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of the complications following major and minor salivary gland biopsy. Materials and Methods Observational studies assessing postoperative complications of minor salivary gland biopsy and indexed at Medline/PubMed, EMBASE, Cinahl, LILACS, or Scopus were selected. This review was registered under the protocol number: CRD42020211169. The level of significance considered was 0.05, and the R software (The R Foundation) was used for the meta-analysis. Results Twenty-seven studies reporting 3208 patients were included in this review. The combined prevalence of postsurgical complications was 11% (95% CI, 8 to 13%, p = 0.01). The percentage of the combined prevalence of neurological complications was 3% (95% CI, 1-6%, p = 0.01). The surgical technique did not influence the frequency of overall and neurological complications. Conclusion Minor salivary gland biopsies are a safe and predictable procedure that should be performed on the lower lip. Postoperative complications are more common than previously reported, but permanent complaints are uncommon.