OBJECTIVE: Head and neck cancer patients, particularly those undergoing total laryngectomy, exhibit high rates of depression and suicide, even compared to other cancer patients. Thus, this study seeks to understand head and neck surgeons’ perceived roles in and treatment patterns regarding mental health sequelae among total laryngectomy patients.
METHODS: An anonymous survey regarding provider perspectives about the mental health experiences of total laryngectomy patients was designed and distributed via email to American Head and Neck Society members and academic otolaryngology head and neck surgery departments. Descriptive statistics were utilized to describe results.
RESULTS: Respondents (n = 63) reported frequently seeing mental health issues among total laryngectomy patients (on average, 48% of patients) and believed otolaryngologists should frequently screen for these conditions (85%). However, a significant subset of the sample (39%) reported feeling uncomfortable addressing mental health issues and cited factors such as lack of expertise (73%) or lack of resources to address mental health (73%). Overall, most respondents agreed that this population could receive better mental healthcare (88%). Referral to speech-language pathologists (80%), community-based support groups (54%), and referral to a mental health provider (n = 35, 54%) were frequently recommended post-operative prophylactic measures.
CONCLUSION: This national cross-sectional survey of head and neck surgeons demonstrated that while physicians acknowledge and appreciate the need for mental health services among laryngectomy patients, a significant minority feel unprepared to address mental health due to a lack of training and resources. Additional research is needed to identify methods to effectively address this gap in care for laryngectomy patients.
Child Adolesc Psychiatry Ment Health. 2025 Apr 26;19(1):46. doi: 10.1186/s13034-025-00904-6.ABSTRACTTHEORETICAL BACKGROUND: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are strongly associated with mental and physical health problems across...
BMC Psychiatry. 2025 Apr 27;25(1):421. doi: 10.1186/s12888-025-06884-3.ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: Although researchers have examined the impact of childhood psychological abuse on adolescent depressive symptoms, further investigation is needed...
BMC Psychiatry. 2025 Apr 26;25(1):420. doi: 10.1186/s12888-025-06837-w.ABSTRACTBalancing exploration and exploitation is a crucial aspect of adaptive decision-making, but psychiatric disorders can disrupt this balance in...
Mol Med. 2025 Apr 26;31(1):154. doi: 10.1186/s10020-025-01208-3.ABSTRACTThe irreversible degeneration of dopamine neurons induced by α-synuclein (α-syn) aggregation in the substantia nigra is the central pathological...
CNS Drugs. 2025 Apr 26. doi: 10.1007/s40263-025-01180-w. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTBACKGROUND: Ketamine and esketamine are increasingly used to manage treatment-resistant depression and have also been...
