Vocal outcomes after laser resection of early-stage glottic cancer with adjuvant cryotherapy.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the vocal outcomes of patients with early-stage glottic carcinoma undergoing laser resection with adjuvant cryoablative therapy. DESIGN: Retrospective review. SETTING: Tertiary care center. Patients Twenty patients with early-stage glottic carcinoma. Intervention Treatment of early-stage glottic carcinoma with endoscopic carbon dioxide laser resection in conjunction with cryoablation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Disease-free survival and subjective and objective measures of posttreatment voice quality, based on serial videolaryngostroboscopy. RESULTS: There was 1 local treatment failure, with an overall mean disease-free follow-up of 32.6 months (range, 3-93 months). Carbon dioxide laser resection and cryoablative therapy were associated with a significant improvement in subjective voice quality (P<.001). Long-term dysphonia was uniformly improved vis-à-vis the pretreatment condition, even among patients with the most advanced disease undergoing the widest resections. Posttreatment web formation was not noted among 4 patients with anterior commissure involvement. CONCLUSIONS: Endoscopic laser laryngeal surgery performed in conjunction with cryotherapy for early-stage glottic carcinoma yielded excellent primary site control, while improving subjective and objective measures of voice quality. Combined laser surgery and cryotherapy is a possible alternative to radiotherapy for selected patients with early-stage glottic carcinoma who desire curative therapy, while optimizing vocal outcomes.

Vocal fold healing after laser cordectomy with adjuvant cryotherapy.

OBJECTIVES: To understand the effect of adjuvant cryotherapy on glottic wound healing after endoscopic CO2 laser cordectomy. STUDY DESIGN: Canine acute injury model with videolaryngostroboscopic and histopathologic outcomes analysis. METHODS: Twelve adult male dogs underwent bilateral endoscopic CO2 laser transmuscular cordectomy followed by randomized unilateral endoscopic glottic cryotherapy. The animals were randomly divided into four groups and underwent videolaryngostroboscopy followed by sacrifice at 0, 2, 6, and 12 weeks postoperatively. Three untreated male dogs served as controls. Histopathologic sections were prepared with Alcian blue, Giemsa, hematoxylin-eosin, movat's, Masson's trichrome, and picrosirius stains. RESULTS: Videostroboscopy demonstrated an earlier restoration of glottic volume and a return of mucosal waves among vocal folds treated with combined therapy by 6 weeks posttreatment. The mean depth of inflammatory reaction in the vocal cords treated with combined therapy was 1.07 mm versus 1.15 mm in vocal cords treated with CO2 laser therapy alone. At 2 and 6 weeks postoperatively, combined treatment was associated with a decreased volume of collagen. At 12 weeks postoperatively, combined treatment was associated with greater collagen organization, normalized collagen histoarchitecture, and decreased keratinization. CONCLUSIONS: Adjuvant cryotherapy appears to alter glottis-specific wound healing, leading to decreased and more organized collagen formation and decreased keratinization with a resultant improvement in glottic function, when compared with CO2 laser surgery alone, in an acute canine injury model. Studies in humans are ongoing to further evaluate the clinical potential of cryotherapy on glottic wound healing.

Ultrasonic detection of middle ear effusion: a preliminary study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the ability to detect and characterize middle ear effusion in children using A-mode ultrasonography. DESIGN: Prospective nonblinded comparison study. SETTING: Tertiary children's hospital. PATIENTS: Forty children (74 ears) scheduled to undergo bilateral myringotomy with pressure equalization tube placement. INTERVENTIONS: Before myringotomy, ultrasound examination of the tympanic membrane and middle ear space was performed on each ear. Afterward, myringotomy was performed and the type of effusion (serous, mucoid, or purulent) was recorded. Pressure equalization tubes were then placed. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Comparison of ultrasound findings with the visual assessment of the type of middle ear effusion present. RESULTS: Of the 74 ears tested, 45 (61%) had effusion on direct inspection. The effusion was purulent in 8 ears (18%), serous in 9 ears (20%), and mucoid in 28 ears (62%). Ultrasound identified the presence or absence of effusion in 71 cases (96%) (P = .04). Ultrasound distinguished between serous and mucoid effusion with 100% accuracy (P = .04). The probe did not distinguish between mucoid and purulent effusion. CONCLUSIONS: Ultrasonography is an accurate method of diagnosing middle ear effusion in children. Moreover, it can distinguish thin from mucoid fluid. Further refinements in probe design may further improve the sensitivity of fluid detection and allow differentiation of sterile vs infectious effusion.

Intratracheal ectopic thyroid tissue: a case report and literature review.

We discuss a case of intratracheal ectopic thyroid tissue (ETT) that was retrieved from the files of the Otorhinolaryngic--Head and Neck Pathology Registry at the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology. The patient was a 54-year-old man who had a history of papillary thyroid carcinoma, which had been treated with a subtotal thyroidectomy. During routine follow-up 4 years later, the patient's primary care physician detected an elevated thyroglobulin level. Further referrals and evaluations revealed that the patient had intratracheal ETT. The patient refused to undergo surgical excision and remains without evidence of recurrent carcinoma. In a MEDLINE literature review, we found only 13 other well-documented cases of intratracheal ETT since 1966; in all but two cases, patients had benign disease. Once the possibility of thyroid carcinoma has been eliminated by histologic examination, intratracheal ETT can be managed by complete surgical excision with the prospect of an excellent long-term clinical outcome.