Fig 1. Flow chart of the retrospective study.

One hundred and eighty patients were enrolled from medical records using key words “free flap reconstruction”. Four patients were excluded because they also had hypopharynx cancer that needed not only free flap reconstruction but also jejunum tissue transfer. Seven patients were excluded because they either had end-organ disease or a psychiatric disorder that may have complicated their recovery course. Finally, fourteen patients were excluded due to incomplete medical records. A total 156 of patients were included in the final analysis.