Delayed cervical emphysema after thyroidectomy: a case report and a literature overview.

Thyroidectomy is a surgery performed due to both benign and malign diseases in the thyroid. The overall complication rate is low, where most of them will appear within the first 24 hours after surgery. However, severe complications can occur as late as 14 days postsurgery. A woman in her late 30's underwent total thyroidectomy due to Graves' disease. There were no complications until she presented with swelling on her neck 10 days after surgery. She was diagnosed with cervical emphysema and treated with a controlled negative pressure drain until there was no more air leakage. We assumed that the emphysema was due to an occult injury of the trachea. Urgent evaluation and hospitalization are needed if the patient presents with swelling in the neck after thyroidectomy. Surgeons should be aware of this delayed complication, so they are able to inform and manage their patients accordingly.

Head and neck paragangliomas in Norway, importance of genetics, updated diagnostic workup and treatment.

BACKGROUND: Head and neck paragangliomas (HNPG) are rare and predominantly benign tumours, originating from the neuroendocrine paraganglionic system. A considerable proportion of HNPGs are hereditary, depending on the population. AIMS/OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to estimate the rate of hereditary HNPGs in a Scandinavian (Norwegian) population, report long-term experience with HNPGs and offer all patients diagnosed an updated follow-up, with emphasis on identifying hereditary HNPGs through genetic screening and multifocality by 18 F-2-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-FDG PET/CT). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Our study was a partly retrospective and partly prospective cohort study. It included patients with HNPG diagnosed at Oslo University Hospital (OUH), Rikshospitalet between 1990 and 2017. The patients underwent genetic testing, 18F-FDG PET/CT and measurement of catecholamines and meta-nephrines in the plasma. All resection specimens and biopsies were subjected to histopathological review. The genetic testing protocol consisted of testing for mutations in the following genes; SDHD, SDHB, SDHC, VHL and RET. RESULTS: Sixty-three patients were included in the study with a median age of 49 years (range 12 - 80). Cranial nerve dysfunction was present upon diagnosis in 13%, and 14% had multifocal paraganglioma (PG) disease. Fifty-six patients (89% of all the patients) underwent genetic testing, and 29% of these had a PG related mutation. Seven of the eight patients (88%) with multifocal PGs who underwent genetic testing had a mutation. In two of the patients, the 18F-FDG PET/CT revealed unknown and subclinical multifocality. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: This is the first study with systematic genetic workup and PET/CT imaging in Scandinavia of HNPG patients. The mutation rate was within the lower range reported in the literature with respect to HNPGs. Combining genetic testing and PET/CT imaging in the diagnostic workup of HNPGs is valuable.

Treatment of Sinonasal Adenocarcinoma: A Population-Based Prospective Cohort Study.

Objectives Sinonasal adenocarcinoma (AC) is a potentially curable disease despite being an aggressive malignancy. Long-term survival can be achieved with early diagnosis and adequate multidisciplinary treatment. Our goal was to evaluate outcomes for patients with AC treated at our institution. Design In a population-based consecutive prospective cohort, we conducted an analysis of all patients treated for surface epithelial AC between 1995 and 2018. Results Twenty patients were included, and follow-up was 100%. The mean follow-up time was 89 months for the entire cohort (112 months for patients with no evidence of disease). Intestinal-type AC was found in 65%, whereas nonintestinal-type AC was found in 35% of all cases; 75% had stage T3/4 disease. Tumor grade was intermediate/high in 65%. Eighteen patients underwent treatment with curative intent (craniofacial resection [CFR] in 61%, transfacial approach in 39%, adjuvant radiotherapy in 89%), achieving negative margins in 56% of cases. Overall survival (OS) rates were 90, 68, and 54% after 2, 5, and 10 years of follow-up, respectively, and the corresponding disease-specific survival (DSS) rates were 90, 73, and 58%. Age over 60 years, tumor with a maxillary origin, and microscopic bone invasion were negative prognostic factors. Radical CFR was correlated with better OS and DSS. Conclusion The high probability of achieving radicality with CFR, the low complication rate, the acceptable toxicity of modern irradiation modalities, and the promising survival rates indicate that this strategy might be considered a safe and an effective option for treating patients with very advanced sinonasal AC.

Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Paranasal Sinuses: A Single Center Experience.

Objective Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the paranasal sinuses is usually diagnosed at an advanced stage, making curative therapy difficult. The goal of this study was to evaluate the management and outcomes of patients with SCC treated at our institution. Methods In a population-based consecutive prospective cohort, we conducted an analysis of all patients treated for SCC between 1988 and 2017. Results A total of 72 patients were included, follow-up was 100%. Mean follow-up was 57 months for the entire cohort, and 108 months for patients with no evidence of disease. Eighty-two percent of all patients had high-stage (T4) disease. Fifty-seven patients underwent treatment with curative intent; consisting of surgery with or without oncologic treatment in 34, and of oncologic treatment only in 23 cases. Fifteen patients received palliative treatment. The rates of overall survival for the entire cohort were 55% at 2, 41% at 5, and 32% at 10 years, and corresponding disease-specific survival (DSS) rates were 55, 45, and 34%, respectively. DSS rates after surgical treatment with curative intent were 81% at 2, 65% at 5, and 54% at 10 years. Retromaxillary involvement and nonradical surgery were negative prognostic factors. Best survival was achieved with the combination of radical surgery and adjuvant oncologic treatment. Conclusion Surgical resection with a curative intent yielded 65% at 5-year DSS even in this cohort of patients with high-stage SCC and is still considered as the treatment of choice, preferably in combination with adjuvant radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

Survival and Surgical Complications in Anaplastic Thyroid Cancer Patients After Completed Multimodal Treatment.

BACKGROUND/AIM: This study aimed to examine survival and surgical complications in patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) after multimodal treatment. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Since 2002, the recommended treatment strategy for ATC at our centre has been hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (HART) with high doses to the neck (64 Gy), combined with weekly doxorubicin, and surgery after 4-8 weeks, if feasible. RESULTS: Between 2002 and 2014, 14 patients completed HART and thyroid surgery. Eight patients had preoperative HART, and six postoperative HART. Median survival was 20 months (range=4-110 months) in all patients, 51 months (range=4-110 months) and 18.5 months (range=9-56 months) in the preoperative and postoperative HART groups, respectively. Six patients survived for more than two years, and four patients survived for more than five years. Seven patients had postoperative complications. CONCLUSION: In this series of selected patients, an improved survival after aggressive, multimodal treatment was observed. Preoperative HART may promote survival although complications may be more frequent.

From the clavicle to the windpipe: Tracheal window resections reconstructed with calcifying periosteum in thyroid cancer.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the outcomes of tracheal window resection and reconstruction using a vascularized periosteal flap (intended for calcification) harvested from the medial clavicle. This is one of several surgical techniques for tracheal resection and reconstruction used for patients with thyroid carcinoma invading the trachea. Importantly, in partial tracheal resection postoperative dynamic airway collapse must be prevented. Reconstruction of the tracheal defect with a vascularized periosteal flap is one method of achieving a stable airway. METHODS: Twelve patients with locally advanced thyroid carcinoma who underwent tracheal resection and reconstruction at Oslo University Hospital from 2004 to 2017 were studied retrospectively. The primary outcome was a stable airway not requiring airway stenting. The secondary outcomes were the time to decannulation, morbidity, and survival. RESULTS: Eleven of 12 patients did not require airway stenting postoperatively after a median of 111 days. Seven patients developed postoperative complications. The median observation time was 74.8 months (range 10.5-153.5) for all patients. The median disease-free survival was 40 months (range 0-147). By February 1, 2020, seven patients were alive, of whom five showed no evidence of disease. CONCLUSIONS: Tracheal reconstruction with a vascularized periosteal flap yielded good results in terms of establishing a stable airway. This procedure is a viable reconstructive option that allows for decannulation by preventing airway collapse, thereby potentially mitigating the need for end-to-end (ETE) anastomosis or sleeve resections. For selected patients, this procedure may prevent local fatal complications from thyroid cancer invading the trachea. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level 4.

The Role of Adjuvant Treatment in Craniofacial Malignancy: A Critical Review.

Background: Tumors originating from the craniofacial region usually present in a locally advanced stage with frequent involvement of adjacent sites and have a strong tendency for local recurrence in the absence of adjuvant therapy, even when the original surgical resection was presumed to be radical. In the past decades, several advances in the radiological diagnosis and treatment of craniofacial malignancies have been introduced. There are, however, no randomized trials that define the optimal multimodal treatment of these tumors because of their rarity as well as heterogeneity in both histology and site of origin. The aim of this study was to conduct a critical review of the role of adjuvant therapy in the treatment of craniofacial malignancy. Method: We conducted a critical review of the past and contemporary literature available, focusing on adjuvant oncological treatments of the most common craniofacial malignancies. Results: Preoperative radiotherapy can have a documented role in the treatment of olfactory neuroblastoma and soft tissue sarcoma, while preoperative chemotherapy can be advocated in the treatment of sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma, neuroendocrine carcinoma, olfactory neuroblastoma, and craniofacial sarcoma (both soft-tissue and high-grade osteosarcoma). Postoperative radiotherapy has a well-established role in the treatment of most craniofacial malignancies. The role of postoperative chemotherapy is unclear in most histologies, but is commonly used during the treatment of well-selected cases of paranasal sinus carcinoma, olfactory neuroblastoma, mucosal melanoma, soft tissue sarcoma and high-grade craniofacial osteosarcoma. Discussion: Alongside developments in surgery, there have also been improvements in diagnostics, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. Implementation of novel radiation techniques allows delivery of higher radiation doses while minimizing irradiation-related morbidity. Better understanding of tumor biology allows the construction of more complex treatment strategies, incorporating adjuvant chemotherapy either pre- or postoperatively. In the era of personalized targeted therapy, rapid strides are being made to identify specific tumor-targets for use of novel biologic agents, with the potential to change current management paradigms.

The Relationship Between Cisplatin-related and Age-related Hearing Loss During an Extended Follow-up.

OBJECTIVES: Cisplatin-related hearing loss (HL) is claimed to progress after treatment. This controlled longitudinal study with extended follow-up investigates HL in testicular cancer survivors (TCSs) after cisplatin-based chemotherapy (CBCT). STUDY DESIGN: Controlled longitudinal study. METHODS: Eighty-two TCSs treated with CBCT between 1980 and 1994 in Norway participated in two surveys (S1/S3), including pure-tone audiograms (0.125-8 kHz) and self-reported HL, 12 and 31 years after treatment, respectively. Hearing thresholds were age-adjusted based on age-matched hearing thresholds from the general population (controls). Hearing loss was defined as thresholds >20 dB at any frequency. RESULTS: Between the two surveys, the prevalence of high-frequency HL (4, 6, and 8 kHz) increased from 73% to 94% but approached those of the aging general population after age adjustment. In TCSs aged >40 years at first survey, HL at the subsequent survey equaled that of controls. Self-reported HL increased from seven (9%) at S1 to 20 (26%) at S3. At S1, age-adjusted HL was identified in all (seven) TCSs reporting decreased hearing whereas at S3, hearing thresholds did not differ from controls in seven out of 20 patients reporting HL. CONCLUSION: CBCT-related ototoxicity causes high-frequency HL, but in contrast to reports from follow-up studies from the first post-treatment decade, no major progression was found beyond the first post-treatment decade for frequencies 0.125-8 kHz. Importantly, with extended follow-up, hearing thresholds of patients approach those of the general population, possibly due to a less-than-additive effect with age-related hearing loss (ARHL) in CBCT-treated patients. Age-and sex-matching is strongly advised in long-term follow-up of CBCT-related ototoxicity. Specificity for detecting ototoxicity with self-reported questionnaires decreases with extended follow-up. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3 Laryngoscope, 130:E515-E523, 2020.

Intranasal bevacizumab injections improve quality of life in HHT patients.

BACKGROUND: Epistaxis is the most common symptom in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), with the greatest negative impact on quality of life (QoL). Repeated intranasal submucosal bevacizumab injections (RISBI) is a relatively new treatment option for moderate or severe grades of epistaxis in HHT. However, the effect of RISBI on QoL is not fully evaluated. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, non-comparative study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients treated by RISBI for HHT-associated epistaxis between June 2011 and August 2013 were prospectively invited to the present study. The end of follow-up was October 2013. The patients were requested to answer QoL questionnaires before the first treatment, and 6-8 weeks after the last treatment. Three levels of QoL were assessed: Overall QoL using Cantril's Self-Anchoring Ladder; Health-related QoL using Short Form 36 (SF-36), and Disease-specific QoL. Psychological distress was measured with the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HADS). RESULTS: Thirty-three patients were treated with RISBI during the period referred to above. Twenty-three patients completed the QoL questionnaires. The average number of treatments per patient was 2.15 ± 1.3 (Range: 1-5). The mean overall QoL improved from 6.47 ± 1.9 to 7.26 ± 1.6 (P < .05). Several dimensions measured by SF-36 were significantly improved with a medium to strong effect size. HADS demonstrated a significant decrease in psychological distress after the last treatment. CONCLUSION: HHT patients treated by RISBI improved in several aspects of quality of life, and psychological distress decreased. RISBI was an effective treatment option for moderate and severe grades of HHT-associated epistaxis. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4 (case series). Laryngoscope, 130:E284-E288, 2020.

Pentraxin 3 level is elevated in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia and reflects the severity of disease-associated epistaxis.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: We aimed to investigate if vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and other angiogenic and inflammatory factors correlated with the clinical presentation in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) patients, particularly in regard to the severity of epistaxis. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, comparative, single-center study. METHODS: One hundred nine samples were collected from 75 HHT patients attending the ear, nose, and throat department at Oslo University Hospital from February 2012 to August 2013. For comparison, samples were collected from 16 healthy controls. Angiogenic and inflammatory factors related to endothelial cell activation were analyzed by enzyme immunoassays. The grade of epistaxis was evaluated using the Epistaxis Severity Score and epistaxis Intensity, Frequency, and Need for Blood Transfusion score at the day of blood sampling. The presence of internal organ manifestations in the HHT group was recorded. RESULTS: Pentraxin 3 (PTX3) was the only factor that was significantly higher in the HHT patients than the controls and showed significant correlation to the epistaxis severity grade and the hemoglobin level. The VEGF level was higher in the HHT patients compared to controls but not to a significant degree. In addition, a significant correlation of the level of VEGF and the grade of epistaxis could not be observed. Also, no significant correlations were observed between the presence of internal organ manifestations and the level of angiogenic factors. CONCLUSIONS: PTX3, at least partly reflecting vascular inflammation, can be a potential biomarker for the severity of HHT associated epistaxis. The serum level of VEGF was not correlated with the severity of epistaxis in the HHT patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 2 Laryngoscope, 129:E44-E49, 2019.

Craniofacial resection of malignant tumors of the anterior skull base: a case series and a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Craniofacial resection (CFR) is still considered as the gold standard for managing sinonasal malignancies of the anterior skull base (ASB), while endoscopic approaches are gaining credibility. The goal of this study was to evaluate outcomes of patients who underwent CFR at our institution and to compare our results to international literature. METHOD: Retrospective analysis of all patients undergoing CFR between 1995 and 2017, and systematic literature review according to the PRISMA statement. RESULTS: Forty-one patients with sinonasal malignancy (81% with stage T4) of the ASB were included. There was no operative mortality. Complications were observed in 9 cases. We obtained 100% follow-up with mean observation of 100 months. Disease-specific survival rates were 90%, 74%, and 62% and recurrence-free survival was 85% at two, 72% at five, and 10 years follow-up, respectively. CFR as primary treatment, en bloc resection, and resection with negative margins correlated to better survival. Recursive partition analysis identified the latter as the most important prognostic factor, regardless of surgical technique. The relative risk of non-radicality was significantly higher after piecemeal resection compared to en bloc resection. Compared to 15 original articles, totaling 2603 patients, eligible for review, the present study has the longest follow-up time, the second highest 5-year OS, and the third highest 5-year DSS, despite having a higher proportion of patients with high-stage disease. CONCLUSION: CFR in true en bloc fashion can still be considered as the treatment of choice in cases of advanced-stage sinonasal malignancies invading the ASB.

Long-term experience with intranasal bevacizumab therapy.

OBJECTIVES/HYPOTHESIS: Long-term follow-up of intranasal bevacizumab therapy in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, noncomparative study. METHODS: Patients treated for HHT-associated epistaxis by intranasal submucosal bevacizumab injections between June 2011 and August 2013 were included and followed prospectively. The effectiveness of the treatment was evaluated by the epistaxis severity score (ESS); the epistaxis intensity, frequency, and the need of blood transfusion (IFT) score; and hemoglobin levels. RESULTS: Thirty-three patients were included. The total number of treatments with intranasal bevacizumab injection was 210. The mean number of treatments per patient was 6.2 ± 4.6 (range, 1-16), and the mean treatment and observation period was 38.8 ± 21.8 months (range, 2-66 months). Four patients showed no improvement after treatment. Eleven patients (33.3%) showed initial improvement in both ESS and IFT, but the treatment was discontinued before the end of the study because the effect became gradually shorter lasting despite repeated injections. Twelve patients (36.3%) continued to have a positive response to the treatment at the end of the study. No local adverse effects were observed, but one patient developed osteonecrosis in both knees during the treatment period. CONCLUSIONS: Intranasal bevacizumab injection is an effective treatment for most of the moderate and severe grades of HHT-associated epistaxis. The duration of the effect of the treatment was variable. Primary and late resistance phenomena to the treatment were quite common. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4. Laryngoscope, 128:2237-2244, 2018.

Olfactory neuroblastoma: a single-center experience.

Olfactory neuroblastoma (ONB) is a potentially curable disease, despite being an aggressive malignancy with a poor natural history. Our goal was to evaluate management outcomes for patients with ONB treated at our institution. Our prospective database for brain tumors and the pathology registry of head and neck cancers at Oslo University Hospital were searched to identify all patients treated for ONB between 1998 and 2016. Variables extracted from these databases, supplemented by retrospective chart reviews, underwent thorough analysis. All cases were formally re-examined by a dedicated head and neck pathologist. Twenty patients were identified. Follow-up was 100%. Mean follow-up was 81.5 months for the entire cohort and 120.3 months for patients with no evidence of disease. Fourteen patients underwent treatment of choice including craniofacial resection (CFR) with or without radiotherapy (XRT). Six patients could only receive less extensive treatment; three patients underwent lateral rhinotomy (LR) with or without XRT after being deemed medically unsuitable for CFR, while another three patients received only supportive, non-surgical treatment (due to positive lymph node status in two and to extensive tumor size in one case). Overall and disease-specific survival rates were 100% after 10 years of follow-up when negative surgical margins were achieved by CFR. Positive margins were associated with poorer outcome with no patients surviving longer than 44 months. Long-term survival was also achieved in two cases among patients not eligible for CFR: one case after radical LR and one case after radio-chemotherapy. Advanced disease at presentation (tumor size ≥40 mm, Kadish grades C and D, or TNM IVa and IVb) and positive surgical margins were correlated to significantly dismal survival. Our study suggests that CFR with or without adjuvant XRT is safe and leads to excellent long-time overall and disease-specific survival. Negative surgical margins, tumor size <40 mm, Kadish stage A/B, and TNM stages I-III are independent prognostic predictors of outcome.

Anaplastic thyroid cancer and hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (HART) with and without surgery.

Anaplastic carcinoma of the thyroid gland (ATC) is one of the most aggressive cancers in humans. With insufficient treatment, the disease most often leads to death in suffocation. From 2002, our treatment strategy has been hyperfractionated accelerated radiotherapy (HART) with high doses (64 Gy) to the neck, followed by surgery 4-8 weeks later if feasible, with the aim to gain control in the neck. After a pathology review, 51 patients were diagnosed with ATC in the period 2002-2014 in the south-east of Norway. Thirty-one received HART, and we present a study of these patients, with death in suffocation as the primary endpoint and survival as the second. No patients treated with HART died in suffocation. Six had a tracheostomy during their course of disease, of whom four were dependent on a tracheal cannula when they died. The best median survival, 19 months, was obtained in the 13 patients where both radiotherapy and surgery were possible as primary treatments. Only surgery came out as a prognostic factor for survival in multivariate analysis. Patients surviving more than 2 years were characterised by having surgery with R0 resection and no or small residual foci of ATC in the specimens. Stage 4C patients survived 3 months only.

Long-term ototoxicity in women after cisplatin treatment for ovarian germ cell cancer.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate long-term cisplatin-induced ototoxicity in women treated for malignant ovarian germ cell tumors (MOGCT). METHODS: Seventy-four women treated for MOGCT in Norway (1980-2009) were analyzed: 41 had received cisplatin-based chemotherapy (CBCT) ("Cases") and 33 had no CBCT ("Controls"). Median follow-up was 15years. Hearing was assessed by pure tone audiometry and by the SCIN questionnaire. Air conduction thresholds were reported as absolute hearing thresholds and age-adjusted thresholds. Absolute and age-adjusted hearing loss were defined as thresholds of >20dB at any frequency. Tinnitus was evaluated using the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory. Serum Platinum Concentration (SPC) was determined. RESULTS: Absolute hearing loss was identified in 21 Cases (51%) and 24 Controls (73%). After adjusting for age, only 9 Cases (22%) and 5 Controls (15%) remained. Age-adjusted hearing thresholds at 4, 6 and 8kHz were slightly but significantly higher in Cases compared to Controls. Subjective hearing loss was reported by 27% of Cases and 21% of Controls, who were significantly older. Elevated SPC values were detected up to 20years after CBCT, but SPC did not correlate significantly with age-adjusted hearing loss. The rate of tinnitus was similar in Cases and Controls. CONCLUSION: Long-term MOGCT survivors treated with CBCT have small but significant reductions in age-adjusted hearing thresholds at 4, 6 and 8kHz versus Controls. Approximately one in four women experienced subjective hearing loss. To avoid overestimation of clinically relevant cisplatin-induced ototoxicity, absolute hearing thresholds should be age-adjusted and compared to an age-matched control group.

Multimodal treatment of craniofacial osteosarcoma with high-grade histology. A single-center experience over 35 years.

High-grade craniofacial osteosarcoma (CFOS) is an aggressive malignancy with a poor prognosis. Our goals were to evaluate treatment outcomes in those treated at a single referral institution over 35 years and to compare our results to the available literature. A retrospective analysis of all 42 patients treated between 1980 and 2015 at Oslo University Hospital, Norway, identified in a prospectively collected database, was conducted. Mean follow-up was 79.6 months. Overall survival at 2 and 5 years was 70.5 and 44.7%, respectively. The corresponding disease-specific survival rates were 73.0 and 49.8%. Treatment was surgery only in eight cases. Additional therapy was administered in 34 patients: chemotherapy in nine, radiotherapy in seven, and a combination of these in 18 cases. Stratified analysis by resection margins demonstrated significantly better survival at 2 and 5 years after radical surgical treatment. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy and subsequent adequate surgery resulted in better survival than surgery alone. Half of the patients either had a primary or familial cancer predisposition. This is the largest single-center study conducted on high-grade CFOS to date. Our experience indicates that neoadjuvant chemotherapy with complete surgical resection significantly improved survival, compared to surgery alone.

Cervical lymph node metastases of squamous cell carcinoma of unknown origin: the diagnostic value of FDG PET/CT and clinical outcome.

FDG PET/CT is perceived as a valuable diagnostic tool in addition to the standard diagnostic workup for patients with isolated neck lymph nodes of squamous cell carcinoma of unknown primary (SCCUP). For patients with SCCUP intended for primary radiotherapy, we hypothesize that the previously reported FDG PET/CT detection rates are too high. From 2008 to 2015, 30 SCCUP patients were examined with FDG PET/CT. The objective of the FDG PET/CT examination was twofold: (1) improve the radiotherapy target definition, and (2) identify the primary cancer. Before the FDG PET/CT, the patients had been through a standard workup consisting of CT of the neck and chest, examination with flexible endoscopy with patient awake, panendoscopy and examination under general anesthesia, tonsillectomy and sometimes blind sampling biopsies, and MRI (floor of the mouth). All FDG PET/CTs were performed applying a flat table, head support and fixation mask as part of the radiotherapy treatment planning. Diagnostic CT with contrast was an integrated part of the PET/CT examination. Only 1/30 patients (cancer of the vallecula) had their primary cancer detected by FDG PET/CT. In addition, a non-biopsied patient with high uptake in the ipsilateral palatine tonsil was included, giving a detection rate of ≤7 % (95 % CI 2-21 %). In this retrospective study, we found that the FDG PET/CT detection rate of the primary for SCCUP patients is lower than previously reported. It is questionable whether FDG PET/CT is necessary for these patients when improved, advanced workup is available.

Sound localising ability in children with bilateral sequential cochlear implants.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the sound localisation ability in children with sequential bilateral cochlear implants and the potential influence of age at the time of the first implantation, years of experience with the first implanted ear and the inter-implant interval (time between the first and the second cochlear implantation). METHODS: Sixty-three prelingually deaf children (mean age, 11.03; range, 6.5-17 years; SD, 3.09) were tested after 12 and 24 months of using bilateral cochlear implants. Every child was tested with each ear alone and both ears together. Five loudspeakers were placed in a 180° horizontal arch with 45° of separation between each loudspeaker. The child was placed 1.5m from the speakers. For each test run, three stimuli were presented at 65dB (A) from each speaker for a total of 15 stimulus presentations. For each test run, we calculated the mean angular error (MAE) and the proportion of correct speakers identified (CSS: correct speaker score). Performance by chance for the MAE was 72° and for the CSS was 20% (1 of 5 speakers). RESULTS: After 12 months of using bilateral CIs, the added effect of the second CI in the MAE was minor, and there was no significant difference in CSS between listening in the unilateral condition and listening in bilateral condition. After 24 months, however, the added effect of the second CI in the MAE was significant (mean diff=12.2°; 95% CI; 4.5-20.0°, p=0.003). The mean bilateral CSS increased significantly to 38% (diff=7.7%; 95% CI; 1.4-14.0%; p=0.019) while the mean unilateral CSS remained at a similar level (27%). The influence of age at the time of the first implantation on CSS after 24 months was not significant (p=0.96). However, the inter-implant interval showed a significant decrease in score by 1.4% per year between the two implants (p=0.04). CONCLUSION: Sound localisation with two versus one CI in children with a sequential bilateral cochlear implantation was significantly improved 24 months (but not 12 months) after the second implantation. A shorter inter-implant interval showed a small but significant beneficial effect on sound localisation.

Bevacizumab in hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia-associated epistaxis: effectiveness of an injection protocol based on the vascular anatomy of the nose.

OBJECTIVE/HYPOTHESIS: To evaluate the effectiveness of a standardized intranasal bevacizumab injection in treating hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT)-associated epistaxis. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective pilot study. METHODS: A total dose of 100 mg bevacizumab (25 mg/mL Avastin) was injected submucosally, 50 mg on each side. A total of 0.5 mL was injected in the sphenopalatine area, upper part of bony septum, upper part of the later nasal wall, and the anterior part of nasal floor. No cauterizations or laser therapy were done during or after the procedure. The hemoglobin level and grades of epistaxis were recorded before and monthly after the procedure. The IFT grading system (intensity [I], frequency [F] of epistaxis, and the amount of blood transfusion [T]) and epistaxis severity score (ESS) for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia system were used. Quality of life (QoL) was evaluated before and 4 weeks after the procedure using the Short Form-36 Health Survey questionnaire, Cantril's Self-Anchoring Ladder questionnaire, and Slotosch disease-specific QoL questionnaire. RESULTS: A significant improvement was found in IFT grading (P = .007), ESS grading (P = .001), and hemoglobin level (P = .01). The QoL differences were statistically not significant. CONCLUSIONS: The four-injection site technique of intranasal administration of bevacizumab is an effective treatment option in HHT-associated epistaxis, at least on the short-term effect. Long-term and comparative studies are needed to further evaluate the significance of this treatment modality.