Orbital complications of acute rhinosinusitis

Introduction. Rhinosinusitis is the infection and inflammation of at least one of the 4 paranasal sinuses (frontal, maxillary, ethmoid and sphenoid). Their correct diagnosis is generally determined by examining the patient clinically and by rhinosinusal endoscopic examination. There are also cases that show complications or continued evolution despite the correct treatment, and then we will use some imaging investigations to find out more about affection(radiography of anterior sinuses of the face, sinus computerized tomography, sinus magnetic resonance imaging). In particular, acute rhinosinusitis should be carefully managed to avoid complications such as the local ones: orbital cellulitis, orbital abscess, osteomyelitis, cavernous sinus thrombosis; and intracranial complications: meningitis, epidural abscess, subdural abscess, cerebral abscess.Materials and methods. There will be presented all orbital complications according to the cases treated in the ENT Clinic of the Coltea Clinical Hospital.Conclusions. Diagnosis of rhinosinusitis is largely clinical and endoscopic.When complications of the condition arise, these should be investigated imagistically to determine their exact extent and to institute the correct treatment as soon as possible. The complications of rhinosinusitis are medical and surgical life-threatening emergencies, which is why in order to diagnose and correct and quickly institute therapy requires a multidisciplinary approach

Pharyngocutaneous Fistulas Following Total Laryngectomy

Total laryngectomy is still the final therapeutic solution in cases of locally advanced laryngeal cancer, as well as in cases of therapeutic failure of organ-sparing surgery or radiation therapy. Following excision of the larynx, the remaining pharynx is reconstructed to obtain continuity of the upper digestive tract. One of the most common complications in these patients, despite constant refinement of the procedure, is the development of a pharyngo-cutaneous fistula. These fistulas prolong hospital stay and often require a second surgical procedure, increasing morbidity and cost for the patient, while diminishing his quality of life. Some risk-factors have been identified, but only some may be corrected before surgery to lower this risk. Managing the fistula once present depends on multiple factors, essential being the size of the fistula as well as the position and concomitant factors, with options ranging from conservative measures to aggressive reconstructive surgery with local miocutaneous flaps. Modern vocal rehabilitation with T.E.P. (tracheo-esophageal puncture) and vocal prosthesis placement presents a new challenge – because of the risk of developing a tracheo-esophageal fistula, with an even higher risk for the patient because of tracheal aspiration. Understanding healing mechanisms of these structures is key to proper management of this complication

Clinical relevance of postzygotic mosaicism in Cornelia de Lange syndrome and purifying selection of NIPBL variants in blood

Postzygotic mosaicism (PZM) in NIPBL is a strong source of causality for Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) that can have major clinical implications. Here, we further delineate the role of somatic mosaicism in CdLS by describing a series of 11 unreported patients with mosaic disease-causing variants in NIPBL and performing a retrospective cohort study from a Spanish CdLS diagnostic center. By reviewing the literature and combining our findings with previously published data, we demonstrate a negative selection against somatic deleterious NIPBL variants in blood. Furthermore, the analysis of all reported cases indicates an unusual high prevalence of mosaicism in CdLS, occurring in 13.1% of patients with a positive molecular diagnosis. It is worth noting that most of the affected individuals with mosaicism have a clinical phenotype at least as severe as those with constitutive pathogenic variants. However, the type of genetic change does not vary between germline and somatic events and, even in the presence of mosaicism, missense substitutions are located preferentially within the HEAT repeat domain of NIPBL. In conclusion, the high prevalence of mosaicism in CdLS as well as the disparity in tissue distribution provide a novel orientation for the clinical management and genetic counselling of families.Spanish Ministry of Health-ISCIII Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria (FIS) [Ref. PI19/01860, to F.J.R. and J.P.]; Diputación General de Aragón-FEDER: European Social Fund [Grupo de Referencia B32_17R / B32_20R, to J.P.]. A.L-P is supported by a “Juan de la Cierva-Incorporación” postdoctoral grant from MICIU (Spanish Ministry of Science and Universities

Trabeculectomy with mitomycin C and Ologen® implant in comparison to classical trabeculectomy

Hintergrund Die Trabekulektomie (TE) mit Mitomycin C (MMC) gilt als Goldstandard der Glaukomchirurgie. Eine neuere Modifikation ist die Verwendung von Ologen®-Implantaten (AEON Astron Europe B.V., Leiden, Niederlande) bei der TE, die in dieser Studie bewertet und mit der klassischen TE verglichen werden soll. Patienten und Methoden In die Studie wurden 98 Augen nach TE mit MMC (Gruppe 1) sowie 70 Augen nach TE mit Ologen® und MMC (Gruppe 2) aufgenommen. Beide Gruppen wurden hinsichtlich des intraokulären Drucks (IOD), der medikamentösen Glaukomtherapie sowie Komplikationen und Nachbehandlungen verglichen. Die Daten wurden präoperativ und bis 2 Jahre postoperativ erhoben. Ergebnisse In Gruppe 1 verringerte sich der IOD von 28,0 mmHg (95 %-Konfidenzintervall: 26,6–29,4 mmHg) präoperativ auf 16,0 mmHg (14,0–18,1) nach 2 Jahren. In Gruppe 2 wurde der IOD von 28,5 mmHg (26,8–30,1) auf 14,3 mmHg (11,7–17) gesenkt. Zu allen Zeitpunkten war die Drucksenkung in beiden Gruppen signifikant (p  0,05). Alle glaukomspezifischen Nachbehandlungen waren in Gruppe 1 häufiger, jedoch nicht signifikant. Schlussfolgerung Beide Verfahren zeigten sich gleichwertig effektiv bezüglich der IOD-Reduktion. In unserer Studienpopulation waren nach TE mit Ologen® weniger Nachbehandlungen und folglich seltener Klinikaufenthalte nötig.Background Trabeculectomy (TE) with mitomycin C (MMC) is considered the gold standard in glaucoma surgery. A new modification is the use of an Ologen® implant (AEON Astron Europe B.V., Leiden, Netherlands) during TE, which was analyzed and compared to the standard TE in this retrospective study. Patients and methods On 70 eyes Ologen® was applied during surgery (group 2), whereas 98 eyes were operated on without the implant (group 1). Both surgical procedures were compared regarding the efficiency of lowering the intraocular pressure (IOP), the number of glaucoma medications, the rate of complications and follow-up treatment. Data were collected up to 24 months after surgery. Results In group 1 the IOP was lowered from 28.0 mmHg (95% confidence interval, CI 26.6–29.4 mmHg) to 16.0 mmHg (14.0–18.1) after 24 months. In group 2, the pressure dropped from 28.5 mmHg (26.8–30.1) to 14.3 mmHg (11.7–17.0). The IOP reduction was significant in both groups (p  0.05). Glaucoma-related follow-up treatments were performed more often in group 1 but the difference was not significant. Conclusion Both procedures significantly lower the IOP and the number of glaucoma medications. For our cases, TE with Ologen® and MMC is considered to be superior to TE with MMC regarding the lower rates of follow-up treatments as it is less time-consuming for the patients and the clinic

The Impact of Laryngeal pathology on sleep disorders patients

Sleep disorders are a common disorder the most frequent being obstructive sleep apnea characterized by repetitive episodes of upper airway collapse and respiratory pause. It is associated with a significant cardiovascular morbidity and mortality and severely alters the quality of life .In many cases it can remain undiagnosed because of its symptoms that can be underestimated by both the patient and the doctor. Tobacco, alcohol abuse and obesity are amongst the most common risk factors but the most important ones are related to different anatomical structures that can stop the airflow.Treating this disorder sometime requires multilevel surgery depending on the structures involved the most common of them being palatal, oropharyngeal and tongue base. The development and increased usage of sleep endoscopy has somewhat changed the treatment options due to the fact that laryngeal collapse is almost always seen only on sleep endoscopy. The role of laryngeal pathology has to be taken into account especially in cases where CPAP and surgery have failed

Intraoperative transfusion practices in Europe

Transfusion of allogeneic blood influences outcome after surgery. Despite widespread availability of transfusion guidelines, transfusion practices might vary among physicians, departments, hospitals and countries. Our aim was to determine the amount of packed red blood cells (pRBC) and blood products transfused intraoperatively, and to describe factors determining transfusion throughout Europe. We did a prospective observational cohort study enrolling 5803 patients in 126 European centres that received at least one pRBC unit intraoperatively, during a continuous three month period in 2013. The overall intraoperative transfusion rate was 1.8%; 59% of transfusions were at least partially initiated as a result of a physiological transfusion trigger- mostly because of hypotension (55.4%) and/or tachycardia (30.7%). Haemoglobin (Hb)- based transfusion trigger alone initiated only 8.5% of transfusions. The Hb concentration [mean (sd)] just before transfusion was 8.1 (1.7) g dl and increased to 9.8 (1.8) g dl after transfusion. The mean number of intraoperatively transfused pRBC units was 2.5 (2.7) units (median 2). Although European Society of Anaesthesiology transfusion guidelines are moderately implemented in Europe with respect to Hb threshold for transfusion (7-9 g dl), there is still an urgent need for further educational efforts that focus on the number of pRBC units to be transfused at this threshold

Intraoperative transfusion practices in Europe

© 2016 The Author. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Journal of Anaesthesia.Background: Transfusion of allogeneic blood influences outcome after surgery. Despite widespread availability of transfusion guidelines, transfusion practices might vary among physicians, departments, hospitals and countries. Our aim was to determine the amount of packed red blood cells (pRBC) and blood products transfused intraoperatively, and to describe factors determining transfusion throughout Europe. Methods: We did a prospective observational cohort study enrolling 5803 patients in 126 European centres that received at least one pRBC unit intraoperatively, during a continuous three month period in 2013. Results: The overall intraoperative transfusion rate was 1.8%; 59% of transfusions were at least partially initiated as a result of a physiological transfusion trigger- mostly because of hypotension (55.4%) and/or tachycardia (30.7%). Haemoglobin (Hb)- based transfusion trigger alone initiated only 8.5% of transfusions. The Hb concentration [mean (sd)] just before transfusion was 8.1 (1.7) g dl-1 and increased to 9.8 (1.8) g dl-1 after transfusion. The mean number of intraoperatively transfused pRBC units was 2.5 (2.7) units (median 2). Conclusions: Although European Society of Anaesthesiology transfusion guidelines are moderately implemented in Europe with respect to Hb threshold for transfusion (7-9 g dl-1), there is still an urgent need for further educational efforts that focus on the number of pRBC units to be transfused at this threshold

Intraoperative transfusion practices and perioperative outcome in the European elderly: A secondary analysis of the observational ETPOS study

The demographic development suggests a dramatic growth in the number of elderly patients undergoing surgery in Europe. Most red blood cell transfusions (RBCT) are administered to older people, but little is known about perioperative transfusion practices in this population. In this secondary analysis of the prospective observational multicentre European Transfusion Practice and Outcome Study (ETPOS), we specifically evaluated intraoperative transfusion practices and the related outcomes of 3149 patients aged 65 years and older. Enrolled patients underwent elective surgery in 123 European hospitals, received at least one RBCT intraoperatively and were followed up for 30 days maximum. The mean haemoglobin value at the beginning of surgery was 108 (21) g/l, 84 (15) g/l before transfusion and 101 (16) g/l at the end of surgery. A median of 2 [1–2] units of RBCT were administered. Mostly, more than one transfusion trigger was present, with physiological triggers being preeminent. We revealed a descriptive association between each intraoperatively administered RBCT and mortality and discharge respectively, within the first 10 postoperative days but not thereafter. In our unadjusted model the hazard ratio (HR) for mortality was 1.11 (95% CI: 1.08–1.15) and the HR for discharge was 0.78 (95% CI: 0.74–0.83). After adjustment for several variables, such as age, preoperative haemoglobin and blood loss, the HR for mortality was 1.10 (95% CI: 1.05–1.15) and HR for discharge was 0.82 (95% CI: 0.78–0.87). Preoperative anaemia in European elderly surgical patients is undertreated. Various triggers seem to support the decision for RBCT. A closer monitoring of elderly patients receiving intraoperative RBCT for the first 10 postoperative days might be justifiable. Further research on the causal relationship between RBCT and outcomes and on optimal transfusion strategies in the elderly population is warranted. A thorough analysis of different time periods within the first 30 postoperative days is recommended