Comparison of anthropometric and conic beam computed tomography measurements of patients with and without difficult intubation risk according to modified mallampati score: New markers for difficult intubation.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare the anthropometric and cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) measurements taken from risk-free and risky groups by using the modified Mallampati score (MMS). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 176 volunteers between the ages of 18 and 65 in four different MMS classes were included in the study. The patients in classes MMS I and MMS II were accepted as risk-free and the patients in classes MMS III and MMS IV were accepted as risky for intubation. The Mann-Whitney U test was performed on the data to compare the anthropometric and radiological measurements taken from the risk-free and risky groups. A receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was applied to the parameters that had a statistically significant difference. RESULTS: According to the analysis results, statistically significant differences were found in the neck circumference (NC), maximum interincisal distance (MID), thyromental distance (TMD) and sternomental distance (SMD) of the anthropometric measurements of men and women between the risk-free and risky groups (P < 0.05). In terms of CBCT measurements, the thickness of the tongue (TT), distance between the uvula and posterior wall of pharynx (U-Ph), distance between posterior nasal spine and nasopharynx (Snp-Nph) and length of the epiglottis (LE) were found to have statistically significant differences between the risk-free and risky groups of men and women (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The NC, MID, TMD and SMD anthropometric measurements and TT, U-Ph, Snp-Nph and LE radiologic measurements were found to support MMS, which is one of the most widely used bedside intubation prediction tests. In addition to the inclusion of CBCT for intubation prediction, U-Ph and Snp-Nph radiologic measurements were added as difficult intubation markers.

Exercise is good also for a healthy hippocampus.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the study was to compare the hippocampus sizes of healthy medical faculty students, who were exposed to an intense data input and who underwent serious learning activity and those of healthy sport faculty students who did sports regularly by using MR images and to examine the relationship between a hippocampus size and intelligence. METHODS: We made the study with 58 healthy young males (27 sport sciences faculty students and 31 medical faculty students). R. B. Cattell 3A Culture Fair Intelligence Test was administered to the volunteers. Following this, we got MR images of our volunteers. RESULTS: We could not find a statistically significant difference between medical faculty students and sport sciences faculty students in terms of hippocampus volumes. We could not find a correlation between IQ values and hippocampus volumes. Also, we could not find a significant difference between a right and left hippocampus. CONCLUSION: While doing sport, blood flow increases in the hippocampus, as in all areas of the body. This increased blood flow creates a stimulating effect on neurogenesis. Neurons, which develop as the result of neurogenesis, mean an increase in volume (Tab. 4, Ref. 54).

The effect of ovariectomy on the skin flap viability and myeloperoxidase levels.

OBJECTIVES: Estrogen could affect the rate and quality of wound healing in skin. We aimed to investigate the effects of ovariectomy on skin flap viability and myeloperoxidase (MPO) levels in a rat model. BACKGROUND: Estrogens have many important beneficial and protective roles in skin that they improve collagen content and quality, maintain skin thickness and enhance vascularization. It has been shown that estrogen supplementation accelerates cutaneous wound healing in elderly patients. METHODS: Forty-eight cycling female Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into three groups (n = 16); ovariectomy (Group 1), sham (Group 2), and control (Group 3). Rats were subjected to bilateral ovariectomy in the Group 1, and only laparotomy in the Group 2. Twenty-one days later in the Group 1 and 2, a dorsal caudally based skin flap elevation was done. In the Group 3, the rats had a dorsal skin flap without any surgical intervention. Ten days later, the flaps were harvested for histopathologic examination and biochemical analyses. RESULTS: The rats in the Group 1 had significantly larger necrotic area and lower flap viability than in the Group 2 and 3 (p<0.05). Histopathologic examination showed that necrotic flap regions contained muscle necrosis with an abundant neutrophil infiltration, and severe edema in the Group 1. The MPO activity in the distal of skin flaps was significantly higher in the Group 1 compared to the Group 2 and 3 (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: This study shows that ovariectomy has deleterious effects on skin flap viability in a rat model (Tab. 1, Fig. 6, Ref. 44).

Investigation of the effects of experimental cryptorchidism formed in prepubertal rats during the postpubertal and adult periods.

OBJECTIVE: Investigation of the effects of experimental cryptorchidism formed in prepubertal rats during the postpubertal and adult periods. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The abdominal cavities of 20 rats in the control group were just opened and closed without any further surgical procedure. The testicles of 20 rats in the experimental group were fixed to the anterolateral wall of the abdominal cavity under general anesthesia. At the 6th month, blood and testis tissue samples of rats were obtained and the rats were sacrificed and the experiment was terminated. Statistical analysis was done by SPSS 15.0 package software. RESULTS: The histopathological evaluation of testicular tissues of rats in the control group was in the normal limits. Of the experimental group, the testicular tissues had injury in nearly half of the rats, in which the testicles were fixed in the abdomen for three months that is the 1st subgroup. FSH levels were statistically significantly elevated in both experimental groups of rats (p<0.01). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Cryptorchidism formed experimentally causes a partial damage in the testicular tissue of pubertal rats, however the damage increases gradually in the testicles of rats, in which the testicles were descended and left in the scrotum for another three months. The statistically elevated levels of FSH in both experimental groups of rats can be accounted for severe testicular damage. The timing in descending the undescended testicles to the scrotum is essential and should be performed before the puberty and as early as possible in avoiding the risk of infertility (Tab. 3, Fig. 5, Ref. 44).

Post-natal growth in the rat pineal gland: a stereological study.

The purpose was to observe the changes in a rat pineal gland using stereological techniques during lactation and post-weaning periods. Thirty Wistar albino rats were studied during different post-natal periods using light microscopy. Pineal gland volume was estimated using the Cavalieri Method. Additionally, the total number of pinealocytes was estimated using the optical fractionator technique. Pineal gland volume displayed statistically significant changes between lactation and after weaning periods. A significant increase in pineal gland volume was observed from post-natal day 10 to post-natal day 90. The numerical density of pinealocytes became stabilized during lactation and decreased rapidly after weaning. However, the total number of pinealocytes continuously increased during post-natal life of all rats in the study. However, this increment was not statistically significant when comparing the lactation and after weaning periods. The increase in post-natal pineal gland volume may depend on increment of immunoreactive fibres, capsule thickness or new synaptic bodies.

C-2 anterior plate-screw fixation: a quantitative anatomical and morphometric evaluation.

OBJECTIVES: Discectomy and inter-vertebral body fusion combined with the anterior plate-screw fixa tion is the common procedure in cervical spine surgery. But the anterior plate-screw fixation of the C2 spine has been the uncommon surgical procedure. In this study, we analyze the anatomy of the C2 body relevant to C2 anterior plate-screw fixation. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Eighty-six dried C2 spines were evaluated directly for this study. Measurements were made on the C2 body width and midsagittal anteroposterior (AP) depth and the anteroposterior parasagittal depth 5 mm lateral to midline on the inferior endplates, in addition to on the middle body. Measurements also were made of anteroposterior parasagittal vertebral depth with both medial and lateral inclination of 10 degrees, with respect to the parasagittal plane of the vertebral body. RESULTS: The ideal maximum screw length and trajectory was found to be AP medial parasagittal depth of inferior surface of the C2 body [Right: 13.7 +/- 1.4 mm (11.0-17.9), Left: 13.6 +/- 1.5 mm (10.7-17.8)]. CONCLUSIONS: We report the measurements of the vertebral body of the C2. We think these measurements provide guidelines for operating on the anterior C2 spine, and enhance the confidence interval for the surgeon (Tab. 3, Fig. 1, Ref. 24).

The comparative investigation of morphology of papillary muscles of left ventricle in different species.

The papillary muscles of the heart are conical projections into the respective chamber of myocardium covered by endocardium. Functionally, the papillary muscles are important part of the respective valve complex. They prevent the cusps of a valve from being everted when the ventricle contracts. Our study was conducted on papillary muscles in left ventricle of 135 normal adult hearts (20 humans, 25 dogs, 60 sheep and 30 goats). The length (L), width (W), head number (HN), angle with ventricular wall (A degrees ), distance with annulus (AnD) and apex (ApD), and the shapes of the anterior and posterior papillary muscles were observed. The tendinous chords (CTN) attached to each papillary muscle were counted at their origin. The values of both anterior and posterior papillary muscles were not statistically significant (p > 0.05) in measurements of L, W, HN, A degrees and AnD of all species, but those of CTN and ApD were significant (p < 0.05) between human and animal hearts, while the difference was not significant (p > 0.05) between sheep and goat hearts. Knowledge of morphology of papillary muscles in different species will be of much use to clinical investigators in their studies.

The investigation of perivasculary space under the myocardial bridge in different species.

Our purpose in this study was to investigate the perivasculary space under the myocardial bridges (MB) in dog, sheep, goat and human hearts. A total of 160 hearts were studied, and perivasculary space under the myocardial bridges was examined under microscope. The specimens belonged to 25 dogs, 100 sheep, 25 goats and 10 humans. Special attention was paid to evaluate the distance between the MB and coronary arteries (CA), CA and underlying myocardium (UM) and to find the relation of concomitant vein number accompanying the CA and MB. 219 myocardial bridges were found in total of hearts, and specimens from these bridges were examined under microscope. There were large variations in distance between the MB and CA (0-714 microm) and distance between CA and UM (0-309 microm). The myocardial bridges were classified into three groups in terms of the number of veins accompanying CA, the bridges with no concomitant veins with one concomitant vein and with two concomitant veins. This suggests that the distance between the MB and CA is crucial to determine how much force is on the CA. The environment surrounding the CA may be a crucial factor in determining whether the MB influences the induction of heart disorders or not.

Echocardiographic and morphologic examination of left ventricular false tendons in human and animal hearts.

False tendons are thin, fibrous or fibromuscular structures that traverse the cavity of the left ventricle with no connection to the valvular cusps; they may be single or multiple. We retrospectively analyzed echocardiograms for the prevalence of false tendons in the hearts of 368 (231 male, 137 female) newborns, infants, and children (mean age = 6.28 +/- 4.32 years) who were referred for echocardiography because of suspected acquired or congenital heart disease, but in whom no cardiac pathology was found. In addition, we studied the prevalence of false tendons in 90 hearts from three species of animals (dog, sheep, goat) and eight cadaveric human hearts. In our echocardiographic study, false tendons were detected in 97 of 368 hearts (26.4%). In our gross morphologic studies, false tendons were observed in most of the animal and human hearts: they were present in 5 of 8 (62.5%) human hearts, 14 of 20 (70%) dog hearts, 41 of 50 (82%) sheep hearts, and 16 of 20 (80%) goat hearts. The overall prevalence in animal hearts was 71 of 90 (78.8%). Histologic examination showed the false tendons to be composed of cardiac muscle, blood vessels, fibrous tissue, and Purkinje cells. The possible role of false tendons in innocent murmurs, cardiac rhythm disorders, or left ventricular dysfunction is discussed.