[Complications with surgical treatment of basal cell carcinomas in individuals over 75 years of age: A retrospective study of prognostic factors in 158 cases]

Introduction: Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is a pathology that evolves locally and it is common in elderly subjects whose frailty could restrict the indications for the reference treatment, which is based on surgery. The aim of this study was to investigate the morbidity and the mortality associated with surgical treatment of BCC in patients over 75 years of age, so as to identify possible prognostic factors for postoperative complications.

Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study carried out with patients over 75 years of age who were treated surgically for one or several BCC between 2010 and 2015 in the reconstructive and cosmetic plastic surgery unit of the Saint-Louis Hospital in Paris (France). We collated the demographic characteristics, the characteristics of the treatment, as well as the rate of major postoperative complications. We performed a univariate and then a multivariate analysis of the various risk factors that were identified.

Results: A total of 158 patients were analyzed and they exhibited a rate of major complications of 12%. The statistical analysis identified five significant risk factors: being over 85 years of age (P=0.006), long-term use of anticoagulant treatment (P=0.02), the presence of at least one comorbidity (P=0.018), a conventional hospitalization (P=0.002), and the use of general anesthesia (P=1.2e^-10).

Conclusion: Five risk factors for major postoperative complications with the surgical treatment of BCC in patients over 75 years of age were identified. These factors may provide direction to medico-surgical teams in regard to the optimal treatment of BCC in elderly patients.