Determining the Impact of Race and Ethnicity on Diagnosis and Management of Vestibular Schwannoma

Introduction: While prior literature has demonstrated that patients of lower socioeconomic groups may have larger tumors on presentation and poorer outcomes, there is limited literature on the impact of race on management of vestibular schwannoma (VS). The objective of this study was to determine whether race/ethnicity impacted treatment choice and postoperative management of VS.

Methods: Retrospective review of patients diagnosed with VS (ICD9 225.1, ICD10 D33.3, and ICD 10 H93.3) who presented to a tertiary care center between January 1, 2018 and October 31, 2023 was completed (IRB H-45412). Primary outcomes, including treatment choice, time to treatment, and postoperative management, were compared among different racial groups.

Results: Of the 78 patients were diagnosed with VS during the study period, 49 (62.8%) patients were observed with serial imaging, 12 (15.4%) patients were treated with radiation, and 17 (21.8%) patients were managed surgically. Choice of treatment (p=0.3917), time to treatment (p=0.3310), and loss to follow up (p=0.0579) were not significantly different between different races/ethnicities. In patients who pursued surgery, the duration of admission (p=0.9300), need for rehabilitation facilities (p=0.6271), postoperative facial nerve paresis (p=0.8233), and hospital readmission (p=0.5680) did not differ significantly for different races/ethnicities either.

Conclusions: Race and ethnicity did not significantly impact choice of treatment and management patterns for patients with VS. Furthermore, postoperative hospital courses did not significantly differ between racial groups.