Facial artery pseudoaneurysm and severe bleeding after tonsillectomy - endovascular treatment with PVA particle embolization.

BACKGROUND: Tonsillectomy is one of the most common procedures performed in ENT departments. The most common complication is a haemorrhage, which incidence is estimated at 3-3.9% of all procedures. CASE REPORT: We present the case of a 32-year-old female with severe bleeding 11 and 23 days after tonsillectomy. An angiography revealed a pseudoaneurysm of the facial artery (FA), a 5 mm in diameter, at the level of tonsillar artery takeoff. The FA was embolized with 500-µm particles of PVA. The procedure was successful. The patient did not experience further bleeding. CONCLUSIONS: In rare cases post-tonsillectomy haemorrhage may be caused by the pseudoaneurysm of the facial artery. The endovascular embolization of this condition proved to be a valuable treatment method. It is a safe and permanent treatment option in this potentially life-threatening complication.

Functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) in unilateral sinus disease.

BACKGROUND: Unilateral sinus disease (USD) occurs in 23 % of all cases. It is believed that it is mainly associated with cancer development. Retrospective data from large rhinological centers show that the most common USD is chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), followed by mycosis, inverted papilloma and finally cancer, but only in a small percent of cases. THE AIM OF THE STUDY: The analysis of USD in the group of patients who underwent FESS at the secondary referral center. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The retrospective study of patients treated for USD in the Department of Otolaryngology in the Provincial Hospital in Poznan between June 2014 and June 2016. The analysis includes age, sex, the localization of lesions, histopathological and microbiological results, an extension of the surgery and treatment results. RESULTS: Over the analyzed period of time, 415 FESS for chronic sinusitis were performed. In this group, 83 patients underwent surgery for USD. There were 35 women and 48 men.CRS was found in 48 cases, mycosis in nine cases, 12 patients were operated for non-malignant tumors, such as inverted papilloma (9), osteoma (2) and fibrosis tumor(1); seven patients had a choanal polyp and two of them had a foreign body in maxillary sinus - a tooth root lying loose. Four patients were diagnosed with a hypoplastic maxillary sinus and one patient suffered from frontal sinus pyocele. One side endoscopic opening of all sinuses was performed in the group with CRS, endoscopic medial maxillectomy was conducted in patients with inverted papilloma, and an isolated opening of the affected sinus was performed in the cases with mycosis. CONCLUSIONS: USD must be always suspected of malignant degeneration until proven otherwise. Endoscopic sinus surgery with the use of angled scope allows for the removal of even very extensive lesions. In our opinion, the extent of operation is determined by the nature of pathology. While extensive surgery is recommended in patients with inverted papilloma, a limited procedure should be performed in those with isolated mycosis.

Multiple, delayed post-tonsillectomy bleedings in 11-year-old girl as a result of vascular abnormality and anastomosis. Case report.

Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy are the most common surgical procedures in pediatric otolaryngology. The incidence of primary hemorrhage after tonsillectomy in children ranges from 0.38 to 6%. The prevalence of secondary bleeding occurs in 0.5%-9.3% cases [1]. Authors present a case of an 11-year-old girl who experienced 6 delayed, massive post-tonsillectomy bleedings as a result of presence of vascular malformation and the activation of collateral circulation as a result of the left ECA ligature.

National Programme for Prevention and Early Detection of Head and Neck Cancer.

550,000 new cases of cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx and 160,000 of larynx are diagnosed each year worldwide. It is estimated that each year because of head and neck cancer 400,000 of patients will die. Head and neck neoplasms are the tumors which, because of their location, secretly develop and produce uncharacteristic symptoms identical to those that accompany the banal infections of the upper respiratory tract. Results of treatment of patients with head and neck cancer in Poland are highly unsatisfactory. This is due to significant advancement of tumor at the moment of diagnosis. Therefore, raising awareness and improving knowledge of health care workers on head and neck cancers by creating access to prevention research is a priority that will ensure improvement in treatment outcomes in this group of tumors in Poland and abroad.

Clinical characteristics of laryngeal cancer in BRCA-1 mutation carriers.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to analyze the occurrence of clinical features characteristic of breast cancer type 1 susceptibility protein (BRCA-1)-dependent tumors in a series of BRCA-1 mutation carriers with laryngeal cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS: The clinical features of five laryngeal cancer patients with BRCA-1 mutations registered in our center were analyzed for: sex, age at diagnosis, age at operation, tumor size and localization, histopathological subtype and grading, lymph node and distant metastases, mode of treatment and long term results of the therapy. RESULTS: The five patients were all men, with an average age at diagnosis of 52.4 years. The majority of the patients had clinical features typical of BRCA-1-dependent tumors: four out of the five patients had advanced staging at the time of diagnosis and in three of them the disorder disseminated within one year of follow-up. CONCLUSION: Since laryngeal carcinomas in men with BRCA-1 mutations show clinical features characteristic of BRCA-1 dependent tumors, it is reasonable to consider treatment modifications appropriate for this sub-group of tumors.