Nuclear medicine in oral and maxillofacial diagnosis: a review for the practicing dental professional

Nuclear medicine studies often play a significant role in the diagnosis and treatment of oral and maxillofacial diseases. While not commonly used in everyday dental practice, the dental provider should have a conversational knowledge of these imaging modalities and understand the indications and limitations of these studies. The purpose of this review is to discuss the nuclear medicine studies that have applications in the head and neck region as well as their indications, limitations, and diagnostic conclusions that can be drawn from these studies

Sleep-Disordered Breathing in Michigan: A Practice Pattern Survey

Objectives: This survey sought to determine whether self-professed sleep specialists in the State of Michigan show practice variations in the diagnosis and management of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), and whether such variations occur between pulmonologists and neurologists. Methods: Questionnaires on practice volume and patterns during the prior 12 months were mailed to physician members of the Michigan Sleep Disorders Association ( n = 119); 67 were completed and returned. Results: Respondents reported that they personally saw a median of 8 new patients each week for suspected SDB; estimates were that 86% of these patients were eventually confirmed to have SDB. Most patients (82%) had laboratory-based polysomnography after an initial clinic evaluation, and most (69%) of those treated for SDB received continuous positive airway pressure. However, practice patterns differed substantially among respondents, even when the analysis was limited to the 42 who reported board certification by the American Board of Sleep Medicine. For example, among all surveyed practices the likelihood that suspected SDB would be evaluated with a split-night diagnostic and treatment polysomnogram varied from 0 to 90%. The likelihood of SDB treatment with bilevel positive airway pressure varied from 0 to 50%, with automatically titrating devices from 0 to 100%, with surgery from 0 to 100% (0 to 50% among certified practitioners), and with oral appliances from 0 to 20%. The practice patterns of pulmonologists and neurologists did not differ significantly. Conclusion: Approaches to SDB vary widely in Michigan, though not according to clinician background in pulmonary medicine or neurology. A patient’s experience, in both assessment and treatment, could differ substantially based on which clinician is consulted.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47959/1/11325_2003_Article_95.pd

Genome-wide Association Study Identifies Two Susceptibility Loci for Osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone malignancy of adolescents and young adults. In order to better understand the genetic etiology of osteosarcoma, we performed a multi-stage genome-wide association study (GWAS) consisting of 941 cases and 3,291 cancer-free adult controls of European ancestry. Two loci achieved genome-wide significance: rs1906953 at 6p21.3, in the glutamate receptor metabotropic 4 [GRM4] gene (P = 8.1 ×10-9), and rs7591996 and rs10208273 in a gene desert on 2p25.2 (P = 1.0 ×10-8 and 2.9 ×10-7). These two susceptibility loci warrant further exploration to uncover the biological mechanisms underlying susceptibility to osteosarcoma

Violent Governance, Identity and the Production of Legitimacy: Autodefensas in Latin America

This article examines the intersections of violence, governance, identity and legitimacy in relation to autodefensas (self-defence groups) in Latin America, focusing on Mexico and Colombia. By shifting focus from the question of where legitimacy lies to how it is produced and contested by a range of groups, we challenge the often presumed link between the state and legitimacy. We develop the idea of a field of negotiation and contestation, firstly, to discuss and critique the concept of state failure as not merely a Western hegemonic claim but also a strategic means of producing legitimacy by autodefensas. Secondly, we employ and enrich the notion of violent pluralism to discuss the pervasiveness of violence and the role of neoliberalism, and to address the question of non-violent practices of governance. We argue that the idea of a field of contestation and negotiation helps to understand the complexity of relationships that encompass the production of legitimacy and identity through (non)violent governance, whereby lines between (non)state, (non)violence, and (il)legitimacy blur and transform. Yet, we do not simply dismiss (binary) distinctions as these continue to be employed by groups in their efforts to produce, justify, challenge, contest and negotiate their own and others’ legitimacy and identity

Genome-wide association study identifies two susceptibility loci for osteosarcoma

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone malignancy of adolescents and young adults. To better understand the genetic etiology of osteosarcoma, we performed a multistage genome-wide association study consisting of 941 individuals with osteosarcoma (cases) and 3,291 cancer-free adult controls of European ancestry. Two loci achieved genome-wide significance: a locus in the GRM4 gene at 6p21.3 (encoding glutamate receptor metabotropic 4; rs1906953; P = 8.1 × 10⁻⁹) and a locus in the gene desert at 2p25.2 (rs7591996 and rs10208273; P = 1.0 × 10⁻⁸ and 2.9 × 10⁻⁷, respectively). These two loci warrant further exploration to uncover the biological mechanisms underlying susceptibility to osteosarcoma

Correlating the depth of invasion at specific anatomic locations with the risk for regional metastatic disease to lymph nodes in the neck for oral squamous cell carcinoma

BackgroundThe purpose of this study was to investigate the critical primary tumor depth of invasion in oral squamous cell carcinoma that would lead to a 20% or greater risk of nodal metastasis.MethodsAn institutional review board approved retrospective review of our head and neck database was performed from 2009 to 2014 and the data were statistically analyzed.ResultsTwo hundred eighty‐six patients with a diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma who met our inclusion criteria underwent primary excision and neck dissection. For a depth of invasion of 1 mm or less, there were no patients with a positive node. From 1.1 mm to 2 mm of depth of invasion, there was 1 of 11 patients (9%) who had at least 1 positive node. At 2.1 mm to 3 mm, 5 of 25 patients (20%) had at least 1 positive node.ConclusionDepth of invasion and the location of the tumor are 2 important variables to consider when making treatment recommendations to patients with clinical N0 disease. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck 39: 974–979, 2017Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136678/1/hed24724.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/136678/2/hed24724_am.pd