Table 4.
Questions Related to Pathological Assessment of Margins and Impact on Clinical Practice.
| Question | Response, n (%) |
|---|---|
| Is a synoptic or standardized reporting system that is capable of clearly-annotating margin status used at your institution? | |
| Yes | 26 (78.8) |
| No | 7 (21.2) |
| Is there a dedicated head and neck pathologist available for intraoperative frozen section analysis for major ablative head/neck surgical cases at your institution? | |
| Always | 5 (15.5) |
| Most of the time | 10 (30.3) |
| Occasionally, if specifically requested | 7 (21.2) |
| Infrequently | 8 (24.2) |
| Never | 3 (9.1) |
| Is there a dedicated head and neck pathologist available to report the final pathology for major ablative head/neck surgical cases at your institution? | |
| Always | 21 (63.6) |
| Most of the time | 2 (6.1) |
| Occasionally, if specifically requested | 4 (12.1) |
| Infrequently | 3 (9.1) |
| Never | 3 (9.1) |
| What percentage of the time do you think that final pathology reverses or is discordant with intraoperative frozen sections? | |
| Less than 5% | 15 (45.5) |
| 5% to 10% | 15 (45.5) |
| Greater than 10% | 3 (9.1) |
| How do you manage final pathology with positive margins? Please select all that apply. a | |
| Attempt re-excision for clear margin if easily accessible | 36.1% |
| Attempt re-excision all of the time with intraoperative frozen, even if it requires general anesthesia | 13.1% |
| Refer for consideration of radiation and/or chemotherapy as appropriate | 45.9% |
| Other | 4.9% |
a
Select all that apply questions were reported as percentages of the total number of responses received.