Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the treatment efficacy of low-temperature plasma radiofrequency ablation (LTP-RFA) in patients with early glottic carcinoma (EGC). METHODS: A total of 80 EGC patients were retrospectively selected and divided into a control group (standard laryngofissure) and a research group (LTP-RFA) based on their treatment methods. Surgery-related indicators, visual analogue scale (VAS) and mucosal recovery scores, efficacy, serum indices, voice acoustics (amplitude perturbation, fundamental frequency perturbation, harmonic-to-noise ratio), European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTCQLO-C30) scores, complications, and postoperative recurrence were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: Compared to the control group, patients in the LTP-RFA group demonstrated markedly shorter surgery time, less intraoperative blood loss, and reduced length of hospital stay. In addition, postoperative VAS score, mucosal recovery score, and the total complication rate were all lower in the research group, with a higher overall effective rate. The research group also exhibited greater reductions in post-treatment serum biomarker levels (e.g., matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), nitric oxide (NO), or vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)), better improvements in acoustic parameters (e.g., amplitude perturbation, fundamental frequency perturbation, and harmonic-to-noise ratio) than the control group, along with higher total EORTCQLO-C30 scores. The recurrence rate was equivalent in the two groups. CONCLUSION: LTP-RFA is an effective treatment for EGC, offering advantages in improving therapeutic efficacy, voice acoustics, as well as reducing postoperative complications.