Congenital Paradoxical Lower Eyelid Retraction With Upgaze due to an Anomalous Extraocular Muscle.

Congenital anomalous orbital structures are rare and associated with strabismus, globe retraction, and dystopia. The authors present a case of congenital paradoxical right lower eyelid retraction with upgaze due to an anomalous extraocular muscle in a 17-year-old, healthy, female patient. Orbital computed tomography showed an intraconal, inferolateral soft-tissue band extending from the orbital apex to the inferior oblique muscle and lower eyelid. There was resolution of lower eyelid retraction and exposure symptoms after resection of the anterior portion of the fibromuscular band from the lower eyelid retractors and eyelid elevation with ear cartilage. To the authors' knowledge, this case is the first to report anomalous orbital structure as a rare cause of congenital paradoxical lower eyelid retraction, which can be improved with resection.

Hair bundles are specialized for ATP delivery via creatine kinase.

When stimulated strongly, a hair cell's mechanically sensitive hair bundle may consume ATP too rapidly for replenishment by diffusion. To provide a broad view of the bundle's protein complement, including those proteins participating in energy metabolism, we used shotgun mass spectrometry methods to identify proteins of purified chicken vestibular bundles. In addition to cytoskeletal proteins, proteins involved in Ca(2+) regulation, and stress-response proteins, many of the most abundant bundle proteins that were identified by mass spectrometry were involved in ATP synthesis. After beta-actin, the cytosolic brain isoform of creatine kinase was the next most abundant bundle protein; at approximately 0.5 mM, creatine kinase is capable of maintaining high ATP levels despite 1 mM/s ATP consumption by the plasma-membrane Ca(2+)-ATPase. Consistent with this critical role in hair bundle function, the creatine kinase circuit is essential for high-sensitivity hearing as demonstrated by hearing loss in creatine kinase knockout mice.

Risk factors for local recurrence and metastasis in soft tissue sarcomas of the extremity.

OBJECTIVES: We reviewed our institution's experience in treating soft tissue sarcomas of the extremity to identify factors associated with local recurrence, metastasis, and overall survival, to identify patients who may benefit from intensification of therapy. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed for patients who underwent both limb-sparing surgery and external beam radiotherapy for extremity sarcoma. Those who had gross residual disease or who presented with recurrent or metastatic disease were excluded. The Kaplan-Meier product limit and multivariate Cox regression were used to estimate local failure-free probability, distant failure-free probability, and overall survival along with associations with patient, tumor, and treatment characteristics. RESULTS: One hundred eighty-eight patients were included in the analysis. Twenty-five (13%) and 46 (24%) experienced local and distant recurrence, respectively. Patients with high/intermediate-grade tumors [hazard ratio (HR)=5.63, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.27-24.89, P=0.023] or with multifocally positive margins (HR=4.27, 95% CI: 1.20-15.24, P=0.026) were more likely to fail locally. Those with a preceding local recurrence (HR=8.58, 95% CI: 3.87-19.04, P<0.0001), high/intermediate-grade tumors (HR=5.68, 95% CI: 1.28-25.25, P=0.023), or no secondary reexcision (HR=2.5, 95% CI: 1.09-5.74, P=0.031) were more likely to develop metastasis. Patients with local recurrence (HR=3.6, 95% CI: 1.77-7.29, P<0.001), metastasis (HR=16.0, 95% CI: 7.93-32.31, P<0.0001), or without secondary reexcision (HR=3.2, 95% CI: 1.27-8.09, P=0.014) had decreased overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Patients whose tumor grade or margin status put them at high risk for local failure should be considered for intensification of therapy. Those with a local recurrence should be considered for increased surveillance or systemic therapy, as local failure is associated with subsequent metastasis and decreased survival.