Predictors of surgical treatment burden, outcomes, and overall survival in older adults with basal cell carcinoma: Results from the prospective, multicenter BATOA cohort.

BACKGROUND: Incorporating patient-related factors associated with treatment outcomes could improve personalized care in older patients with basal cell carcinoma (BCC). OBJECTIVE: To evaluate and identify predictors of treatment burden, treatment outcomes, and overall survival in patients aged ≥70 years, surgically treated for BCC in the head and neck area. METHODS: The data from the prospective, multicenter Basal Cell Carcinoma Treatment in Older Adults (BATOA) cohort study were extracted to evaluate the experienced treatment burden (visual analog scale, 0-10 cm; lower scores indicating higher treatment burden), treatment outcomes, and mortality. RESULTS: A total of 539 patients were included (median age, 78 years). The patients experienced a low overall treatment burden (median, 8.6) and good cosmetic results. The predictors of higher treatment burden were instrumental activities of daily living (iADL) dependency, female sex, complications, larger tumor diameter, and polypharmacy. Thirty-five patients (6.5%) died (none of the deaths were due to BCC) within the follow-up period; the predictors of mortality were increasing comorbidity index and iADL dependency. No difference in these outcomes was seen between Mohs micrographic surgery and conventional excision after correction for covariates. Age was not significantly associated with any outcome. LIMITATIONS: A selection bias may exist owing to the observational design. CONCLUSION: BCC management decisions based on chronological age alone should be avoided, whereas more attention is recommended for patient-related factors. Based on these data, early BCC intervention is beneficial for robust and fit patients or those experiencing symptoms.

Long-term quality of life assessment in patients with auricular prostheses.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the quality of life of people with an auricular prosthesis. METHODS: A retrospective case series study was conducted. Quality of life was evaluated by an open-ended question form and 3 questionnaires: the Glasgow Benefit Inventory, the Rosenberg Self-Esteem scale, and the standard Medical Outcome Study Short-Form 12. The occurrence of peri-implant skin reactions (defined by Holgers), along with fixture stability and prosthesis data, were evaluated in 29 implants from 10 patients. The follow-up period varied between several months and more than 17 years. RESULTS: The 3 questionnaires showed an improvement in quality of life scores for all patients, and all patients would recommend the prosthesis. Skin reactions that needed treatment (ie, Holgers grades 2-4) were seen in 6.2% of all observations; 44.8% of the implants demonstrated either no reaction at all or redness only around the implant. A significant correlation was found between the Rosenberg Self-Esteem score and the number of prosthesis replacements. CONCLUSION: In general, patients seemed to be satisfied with the auricular prostheses, which did improve their quality of life. Furthermore, the quality of life was enhanced with higher quality prostheses and with proper hygiene to prevent skin reactions.

A closer look at the paralyzed face; a narrative review of the neurobiological basis for functional and aesthetic appreciation between patients with a left and a right peripheral facial palsy.

BACKGROUND: The facial nerve or n. facialis (NVII) is the seventh cranial nerve and it is responsible for the innervation of the mimic muscles, the gustatory organ, and the secretomotor function to the salivary, lacrimal, nasal and palatine glands. Clinical presentation of Facial Palsy (FP) is characterized by unilateral facial asymmetry and may present with a change in taste, decreased saliva production, and dysarthria. A facial palsy has a notable effect on the facial appreciation by both the patient and the environment and also affects quality of life and emotional processing. There appear to be differences in the appreciation of people with a left and right facial palsy. PURPOSE OF THIS REVIEW: The purpose of the review is to give an overview of the anatomy of the facial nerve, neuro-anatomy of face processing, and hemispheric specialization and lateralization. Further,an overview is given of the clinical studies that translated the neuro-anatomical and neurobiological basis of these concepts into clinical studies. What this review adds: This review emphasizes the neurobiological evidence of differences in face processing between the left and right cerebral hemisphere, wherein it seems that the right hemisphere is superior in emotional processing. Several theories are proposed; 1) a familiarity hypothesis and 2) a left-right hemispheric specialization hypothesis. In clinical studies, promising evidence might indicate that, in patients with FP, there is indeed a difference in how left and right FP are perceived. This might give differences in decreased quality of life and finally in occurrence of depression. Further research must aim to substantiate these findings and determine the need for altering the standard therapeutic advice given to patients.

Classroom performance and language development of CI students placed in mainstream elementary school.

OBJECTIVE: Investigation of the relation between classroom performance and language development of cochlear implant (CI) students in mainstream education. Structural analyses of assessment of mainstream performance (AMP) and Screening Instrument For Targeting Educational Risk (SIFTER) instruments. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional instrument and language development analyses. SETTING: Tertiary university medical center. PATIENTS: Twenty-six CI children in elementary school with congenital or prelingual deafness were included. At the time of this study, mean period of multichannel CI use was 5.3 years, and children's ages ranged from 6.5 to 12.8 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Assessment of mainstream performance and SIFTER instruments measured classroom performance and language development were measured by means of Reynell and Schlichting tests. RESULTS: Assessment of mainstream performance and SIFTER domains showed good reliability (Cronbach alpha >0.6), but factor analyses only showed the expected instrument structure in the AMP. In both questionnaires and within all domains, individual variability is detected. Spearman's correlation analyses showed the probable explanation of individual questionnaire variability by language test results (p value mostly <0.01). The AMP and SIFTER instruments showed a predictive capacity for language development, based upon general linear model univariate and linear regression analyses. CONCLUSION: Individual classroom performance, measured by AMP and SIFTER questionnaires, of CI children in mainstream education varies. Correlation analyses showed strong significant relation between questionnaire results (classroom performance) and both expressive and receptive language test results (Schlichting and Reynell tests). Structural questionnaire analyses of the AMP and SIFTER demonstrated good reliability. The predictive value of the AMP can monitor the actual linguistic functioning of the child.

Cochlear implantation and quality of life in postlingually deaf adults: long-term follow-up.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate long-term quality of life (QoL) in postlingually deaf adults after entering the cochlear implantation (CI) program. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: Follow-up study from 1998 onwards in tertiary university medical center. Long-term CI users, patients who have not received a CI, and relatively short-term CI users were re-evaluated six years after initial data collection in 1998 by using three questionnaires (NCIQ, HUI3, and SF36) and speech perception tests. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: In general, the beneficial effect of CI remained stable during long-term follow-up, though scores on the questionnaires decreased slightly. Outcomes before and after cochlear implantation were significantly different. The group without a CI demonstrated slightly decreasing trends in outcomes. Long-term speech perception performance improved in time. SIGNIFICANCE: This is the first study to investigate long-term follow-up of CI patients, in all aspects of QoL combined with speech perception performance, in comparison with postlingually deaf adults without CI.

Evaluation of the Parental Perspective instrument for pediatric cochlear implantation to arrive at a short version.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluation of the well-known and widely used Parental Perspectives questionnaire (PP) by means of statistical analysis and exploring the possibility to develop a short version, as the instrument is often regarded as being rather lengthy with 74 questions. METHODS: One hundred and thirty parents of children participated in this study. To assess internal consistency among the PP items of the domains, Cronbach's alpha coefficients were calculated. Corrected item-total correlations were carried out to investigate the strength of individual items' associations with the construct. Factor analysis was performed to identify the statistical factors of the original PP and in exploring a revised short form PP. RESULTS: Instead of the expected 8-factor structure (eight suggested domains), factor analyses found a 15-factor structure. Nevertheless, when the proposed eight domain structure is followed, some items can be disposed of, based upon the Cronbach's alpha analyses and consistent reasoning. After reducing the number of factors based on standard criteria, a three-domain structure was shown as main concept. The cumulative variance explained by this new model was 39.4% and the final number of items in this probable revised version is 23. Reliability analyses of the new domains of the proposed short version PP (sPP) showed good internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha 0.79). The corrected item-total correlations represent strong individual items' associations with the construct as R items-total varies between 0.34 and 0.64. CONCLUSIONS: The Parental Perspectives instrument (PP) is an important tool to assess the impact of cochlear implantation of a child for the quality of life for the family and the child itself. This statistical investigation showed a possible option for development of a short form usable in prospective follow-up studies.

Quality of life and cochlear implantation in Usher syndrome type I.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this descriptive, retrospective study were to evaluate quality of life, hearing, and vision in patients with Usher syndrome type I with and without cochlear implant. METHODS: Quality of life (QoL) of 14 patients with Usher type I (USH1) with a cochlear implant (CI) (seven adults, seven children) was compared with those of 14 patients with USH1 without a CI (12 adults, two children) by means of three questionnaires: NCIQ, SF12, and the Usher Lifestyle Survey. Additional information on hearing level was obtained by the equivalent hearing loss (EHL) principle and on the visual deterioration by the functional vision score (FVS). RESULTS: A significant benefit of CI was seen in the hearing-specific questionnaire NCIQ. This difference could not be detected in the generic SF12 survey. The Usher Lifestyle Survey indicated that patients with USH1 with a CI tend to be able to live an independent life more easily than the profoundly deaf unimplanted patients with USH1. EHL and FVS scores varied in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: Overall QoL can be enhanced by CI in patients with USH1, although effects are mostly seen in hearing-related QoL items.

Audiologic performance and benefit of cochlear implantation in Usher syndrome type I.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this retrospective study was to evaluate the benefit and performance of cochlear implantation in patients with Usher syndrome type 1 (USH1). METHODS: Fourteen patients with a clinical diagnosis of USH1 were included. Mutation analysis of USH1 genes was performed in all of them. All patients filled in the G(C)BI questionnaire, which measures the benefit of implantation. In addition, equivalent hearing level scores (EHL) were calculated to measure performance. Correlations between the mentioned parameters were studied. RESULTS: One or two pathogenic mutations were identified in seven of the 14 examined patients. Similar to previous studies, it was demonstrated that implantation at an earlier age results in better performance than implantation at higher age. Cochlear implantation performed within the first 2 decades of life was beneficial to 13 of 14 (93%) of the patients with USH1. Finally, the EHL score and the G(C)BI score showed a significant correlation; the benefit of implantation increases with a decreasing EHL score. CONCLUSIONS: Cochlear implantation in patients with USH1 improves the audiologic performance when patients are implanted at an earlier age and is beneficial according to the G(C)BI when performed within the first 2 decades of life.

Classroom performance of children with cochlear implants in mainstream education.

OBJECTIVES: We compared classroom performance of children with a cochlear implant (CI) with that of their normal-hearing peers in mainstream education. METHODS: Thirty-two CI children in mainstream education, congenitally or prelingually deaf, participated in this study, as did 37 hearing classmates. Their teachers filled out 2 questionnaires: the Assessment of Mainstream Performance (AMP) and the Screening Instrument for Targeting Educational Risk (SIFTER). A high Fletcher index and open-set speech perception scores were obtained. RESULTS: The children with CIs scored above average on the AMP and sufficiently well in all but one area (communication) of the SIFTER questionnaire. Class rankings did not differ significantly between the CI students and their normal-hearing peers. Overall, the normal-hearing group outperformed the CI group. The classroom performance of CI children correlated negatively with duration of deafness and age at implantation. All longitudinal audiological data of the CI children showed improvement in open-set speech recognition. CONCLUSIONS: Although the results are encouraging, the CI group scored significantly less well than their normal-hearing peers on most questionnaire domains of both the AMP and the SIFTER. The most important variables for the outcome in this study were age at implantation and duration of deafness.

The Usher lifestyle survey: maintaining independence: a multi-centre study.

Patients with Usher syndrome face a special set of challenges in order to maintain their independence when their sight and hearing worsen. Three different types of Usher (I, II and III) are distinguished by differences in onset, progression and severity of hearing loss, and by the presence or absence of balance problems. In this study 93 Usher patients from seven European countries filled out a questionnaire on maintaining independence (60 patients type I, 25 patients type II, four patients type III and four patients type unknown). Results of Usher type I and II patients are presented. Following the Nordic definition of maintaining independence in deaf-blindness, three domains are investigated: access to information, communication and mobility. Research variables in this study are: age and type of Usher, considered hearing loss- and the number of retinitis pigmentosa-related sight problems. Usher type I patients tend to need more help than Usher type II patients and the amount of help that they need grows when patients get older or when considered hearing loss worsens. No patterns in results were seen for the number of retinitis pigmentosa related sight problems.

Negative predictors for satisfaction in patients seeking facial cosmetic surgery: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Facial cosmetic surgery is becoming more popular. Patients generally indicate they are satisfied with the results. Certain patient characteristics, however, have been described as negative predictors for satisfaction. Psychopathology such as body dysmorphic disorder and personality disorders are notorious. Psychosocial and cultural factors are more difficult to distinguish. This systematic review defines the predictors, other than body dysmorphic disorder, of an unsatisfactory outcome after facial cosmetic surgery. The authors are also interested in whether valid preoperative assessment instruments are available to determine these factors. METHODS: An extensive systematic PubMed/MEDLINE and Cochrane Library search was performed. In addition, relevant studies from the reference lists of the selected articles were added. There were no publication-year restrictions, and the last search was conducted on July 20, 2014. All factors described as negative predictors for patient satisfaction after facial cosmetic surgery were identified. RESULTS: Twenty-seven articles were analyzed, including 11 prospective studies, two retrospective studies, one case study, eight reviews, and five expert opinions. The following factors were identified: male sex, young age, unrealistic expectations, minimal deformities, demanding patients, "surgiholics," relational or familial disturbances, an obsessive personality, and a narcissistic personality. CONCLUSIONS: This review indicates the possible demographic and psychosocial predictors for an unsatisfactory outcome of facial cosmetic surgery. A brief personality assessment tool that could be used to address predictors preoperatively was not found. The authors suggest use of the Glasgow Benefit Inventory to assess patient satisfaction postoperatively. Further research is being undertaken to develop such an instrument.