Novel Use of Biphasic Cuirass Ventilation During Definitive Radiation Therapy: A Technical Report.

The use of biphasic cuirass ventilator supported radiation therapy has never been documented. We present the first technical report here. A 57-year-old man with obstructive sleep apnea presented with a T0N1M0 right sided, human papillomavirus related head and neck cancer diagnosed on excisional lymph node biopsy. On further workup, the cancer was found to have originated in the right tonsil and was staged as T1N1. The patient started definitive treatment with concurrent chemo-radiation therapy, but after 5 treatments was no longer able to lay in a supine position for treatment. Diagnostic imaging workup eventually revealed an idiopathic right sided hemi-diaphragm eventration. After consultation with cardiology, pulmonology, and head and neck surgery, recommendation was made for tracheostomy to tolerate supine radiotherapy position, but the patient refused. Instead, computed tomography simulation for radiotherapy replanning was performed using a combination of biphasic cuirass ventilation, home continuous positive airway pressure and oxygen. The patient then tolerated definitive treatment to a dose of 69.96 Gray in 33 fractions with concurrent chemotherapy and experienced no unexpected side effects. Although complex, daily treatment setup was consistent. Daily onboard imaging was precise and accurate. The patient continues to follow up with radiation oncology, medical oncology, and pulmonology. This is the first use of biphasic cuirass ventilator supported radiotherapy reported in the scientific literature. Although daily treatment setup is complex, its use could be considered in patients unable to tolerate radiation therapy treatment positioning as an alternative to tracheostomy.

Factors associated with benefit of active middle ear implants compared to conventional hearing aids.

OBJECTIVE: Identify factors associated with benefit of middle ear implants (MEIs) as compared to conventional hearing aids (HAs). STUDY DESIGN: Independent review of audiological data from a multicenter prospective U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clinical trial. Preoperative and postoperative earphone, unaided/aided/implanted pure-tone thresholds, and word recognition scores were evaluated. RESULTS: Ninety-one subjects were included in this study. Mean word recognition was better with MEIs than with HAs (81.8% ± 12.0% vs. 77.6% ± 14.6%, P = 0.035). Word recognition with MEIs showed a low positive correlation with word recognition measured with earphones (r = 0.25, P = 0.016) and a moderate positive correlation with aided word recognition (r = 0.42, P < 0.001). Earphone word recognition alone was not predictive of MEI benefit over HA benefit (r = 0.09, P = 0.41), unlike differences between scores with earphone and HAs (earphone-aided differences [EAD]) (r = 0.62, P < 0.011). As compared to those with -EADs, subjects with +EADs showed greater improvement in word recognition from unaided to implanted and from HAs to implanted (P < 0.0001). Using the 95% CI for word recognition scores, 16 subjects showed significantly higher scores with the MEI than with HAs. Of those, 14 had +EAD. CONCLUSION: Word recognition benefit derived from conventional HAs and MEIs from this large, multi-center FDA trial provides further evidence of the importance of aided word recognition in clinical decision making, such as determining candidacy for and success with MEIs. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 2b. Laryngoscope, 128:2133-2138, 2018.

Nonsurgical management of human immunodeficiency virus-associated parotid cysts: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this clinical review was to analyze the effectiveness of nonsurgical management options for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated parotid cysts. METHODS: We conducted systematic and meta-analysis reviews. Primary outcomes were complete or partial responses. RESULTS: Systematic review identified 12 relevant studies. The average rates of complete response for antiretroviral therapy (ART), sclerotherapy, and fine-needle aspiration (FNA) were 52.8%, 55.5%, and 33.3%, respectively. Three radiotherapy studies, totaling 104 patients, were included in a meta-analysis. Patients receiving high-dose therapy achieved complete and partial response rates of 65.8% (95% confidence interval [CI] 54.3%-76.2%) and 25.2% (95% CI 16.1%-36.3%), respectively. Patients receiving low-dose therapy achieved complete and partial response rates of 23.2% (95% CI 1.2%-60.9%) and 22.3% (95% CI 5.2%-87.8%), respectively. The rate of complete response was significantly greater for high-dose radiotherapy compared to low-dose (P < .001). CONCLUSION: Among nonsurgical treatment modalities for HIV-associated parotid cysts, radiotherapy has the highest number of reported outcomes in the literature and our analysis suggests that higher dose radiotherapy has higher rates of achieving complete response.

Masseteric Nerve Transfer for Facial Nerve Paralysis: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

IMPORTANCE: A review of the role of masseteric nerve transfer is needed to guide its use in facial reanimation. OBJECTIVE: To systematically review the available literature, and, when applicable, analyze the combined outcomes of masseteric nerve transfer to better define its role in reanimation and to guide further research. DATA SOURCES: Two independent researchers conducted the review using PubMed-NCBI and Scopus literature databases for studies on masseteric nerve transfer for facial nerve paralysis. STUDY SELECTION: Studies that examined masseter nerve transfer with additional cranial nerve transposition/coaptation or muscle flap were excluded. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Literature review and data extraction followed established PRISMA guidelines. Two researchers extracted data independently. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The main planned outcomes for the study were quantitative results of facial nerve movement after nerve transfer including oral commissure movement and time to nerve recovery. RESULTS: A total of 13 articles met inclusion criteria with a total of 183 patients undergoing masseteric nerve transfer. From those studies, there were a total of 183 patients who underwent masseteric nerve transfer. There were 85 men and 98 women with a mean (SD) age of 43 (12.2) years and mean (SD) follow up examination after surgery of 22 (7.6) months. Mean (SD) duration of nerve paralysis was 14 (6) months. Most common cause of paralysis was cerebellopontine angle tumors (81%). Six studies coapted the masseteric nerve to the main facial nerve trunk, whereas 7 used distal branches (buccal or zygomatic). Four studies used interposition nerve grafts with great auricular nerve. Two measures, improvement in oral commissure excursion and length from reanimation to facial movement, were measured consistently across the studies. Pooled analysis showed time from surgery to first facial movement, described in 10 studies, to be 4.95 months (95% CI, 3.66 to 6.24). Distal branch coaptation improved time to recovery vs main branch coaptation, 3.76 vs 5.76 months (95% CI, -0.33 to 4.32), but mean difference was not significant. The use of interposition graft significantly delayed time of nerve recovery, 6.24 vs 4.06 months (95% CI, 0.20 to 4.16). When controlled for main trunk coaptation only, interposition nerve graft delayed recovery but difference was no longer statistically significant, 6.24 vs 4.75 months (95% CI, -0.94 to 3.92). Reported complications were minor and rare occurring in only 6.5% (12 of 183) of patients. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: The masseteric nerve was found to be a good option for nerve transfer in this patient population, and showed favorable results in both time to nerve recovery and improvement in oral commissure excursion. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: NA.

Impact of resident involvement in outpatient otolaryngology procedures: An analysis of 17,647 cases.

OBJECTIVE: This study examines the impact of resident physician participation on postoperative outcomes in outpatient otolaryngologic surgery. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective cohort. METHODS: The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program database was queried for outpatient otolaryngologic procedures performed on adult patients. Cases were analyzed with the following cohorts: attending with resident or attending without resident. Outcomes included complications, readmission, reoperation, and operative time. RESULTS: A total of 17,647 cases were analyzed, with 13,123 patients in the attending without resident cohort and 4,524 patients in the attending with resident cohort. The majority of patients were female (58.7%) and white (88.0%). The average age was 44 (range 16-89) years, and average body mass index was 29.0 ± 7.3 kg/m2 . Total relative value units were higher in the attending with resident group 14.6 ± 12.0 compared with 10.2 ± 8.3 in the attending without resident group (P < 0.01). Univariate analysis revealed that resident participation increased complication rate (2.0% vs. 1.4%, P < 0.01) and operative time (108 ± 98 minutes vs. 60 ± 55 minutes, P < 0.01). There were no differences in readmissions (P = 0.35), reoperations (P > 0.05), or death rates (P = 0.32) between groups. Multivariate regression analysis, however, revealed that resident participation did not increase the rate of any complication, and that operative time was the only significantly impacted variable (P < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Resident surgical training remains a vital component of the current health care system. Previous research has shown that, despite increased operative time, resident participation does not significantly impact complication rates for otolaryngology procedures. This study confirms these findings in the outpatient setting, thus reassuring both the surgeon and patients that resident participation does not impact procedural safety. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 4. Laryngoscope, 127:2026-2032, 2017.

Diagnostic Value of RAS Mutations in Indeterminate Thyroid Nodules.

Objectives To determine the diagnostic value of HRAS, KRAS, and NRAS mutations in fine-needle aspiration biopsies of thyroid nodules that are nondiagnostic on cytology. Data Sources PubMed, Scopus, Embase, CINAHL. Review Methods Two authors independently searched the data sources. To be included, studies reported the RAS mutational status and postoperative histopathologic diagnosis of nodules that exhibited indeterminate cytology after fine-needle aspiration biopsy. Data were extracted to calculate sensitivity, specificity, and positive/negative predictive values of any HRAS, KRAS, or NRAS mutation. A meta-analysis was performed to generate pooled values for each parameter. Results A total of 7 studies with a combined 1025 patients met inclusion criteria. The pooled sensitivity of a RAS mutation for detecting cancer was 0.343 (95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.198-0.506), while the pooled specificity was 0.935 (95% CI, 0.882-0.973). The weighted averages for positive predictive value and negative predictive value were 78.0% and 64.0%, respectively, with 68.0% accuracy. The positive likelihood ratio was 4.235 (95% CI, 1.506-11.910), and the negative likelihood ratio was 0.775 (95% CI, 0.630-0.953). Conclusion Our data suggest that testing for any RAS mutation is unlikely to change the clinical management of thyroid nodules that have indeterminate cytology. While a RAS mutation may rule in malignancy, the sensitivity of testing is low enough to merit further mutational analysis, repeat fine-needle aspiration, or surgical excision, even in the presence of a negative test.

Clinical Implications of Word Recognition Differences in Earphone and Aided Conditions.

OBJECTIVE: To compare word recognition scores for adults with hearing loss measured using earphones and in the sound field without and with hearing aids (HA). STUDY DESIGN: Independent review of presurgical audiological data from an active middle ear implant (MEI) FDA clinical trial. SETTING: Multicenter prospective FDA clinical trial. PATIENTS: Ninety-four adult HA users. INTERVENTIONS/MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURED: Preoperative earphone, aided word recognition scores, and speech intelligibility index. RESULTS: We performed an independent review of presurgical audiological data from an MEI FDA trial and compared unaided and aided word recognition scores with participants' HAs fit according to the NAL-R algorithm. For 52 participants (55.3%), differences in scores between earphone and aided conditions were >10%; for 33 participants (35.1%), earphone scores were higher by 10% or more than aided scores. These participants had significantly higher pure-tone thresholds at 250, 500, and 1000 Hz, higher pure-tone averages, higher speech recognition thresholds (and higher earphone speech levels [p = 0.002]). No significant correlation was observed between word recognition scores measured with earphones and with hearing aids (r = 0.14; p = 0.16), whereas a moderately high positive correlation was observed between unaided and aided word recognition (r = 0.68; p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Results of these analyses do not support the common clinical practice of using word recognition scores measured with earphones to predict aided word recognition or hearing aid benefit. Rather, these results provide evidence supporting the measurement of aided word recognition in patients who are considering hearing aids.

GABAergic interneuron development and function is modulated by the Tsc1 gene.

Tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is a genetic disease with severe neurologic and psychiatric manifestations including epilepsy, developmental delay, and autism. Despite much progress in defining abnormal signaling pathways including the contribution of increased mTORC1 signaling, specific abnormalities that underlie the severe neurologic features in TSC remain poorly understood. We hypothesized that epilepsy and autism in TSC result from abnormalities of γ-aminobutyric acidergic (GABAergic) interneurons. To test this hypothesis, we generated conditional knockout mice with selective deletion of the Tsc1 gene in GABAergic interneuron progenitor cells. These interneuron-specific Tsc1 conditional knockout (CKO) mice have impaired growth and decreased survival. Cortical and hippocampal GABAergic interneurons of CKO mice are enlarged and show increased mTORC1 signaling. Total numbers of GABAergic cells are reduced in the cortex with differential reduction of specific GABAergic subtypes. Ectopic clusters of cells with increased mTORC1 signaling are also seen suggesting impaired interneuron migration. The functional consequences of these cellular changes are evident in the decreased seizure threshold on exposure to the proconvulsant flurothyl. These findings support an important role for the Tsc1 gene during GABAergic interneuron development, function, and possibly migration.