Concurrent Horner's and Harlequin syndromes.

Horner's syndrome and Harlequin syndrome are both caused by disruptions to the sympathetic supply to the face. They have a varied aetiology, including intraneural dysfunction, extra- or intraneural compression, and idiopathic as well as iatrogenic causes. Horner's syndrome can occur as a rare complication of thyroid surgery and the Harlequin sign has only been documented as a complication of cervical surgery in a handful of paediatric patients. We present a patient who developed both conditions subsequent to excision of a papillary carcinoma with a neck dissection. We illustrate the anatomical basis for this presentation and highlight the need for its appreciation. This is of particular interest as it impacts on several specialities operating in the cervical and thoracic fields.

Odontogenic skin sinus: a commonly overlooked skin presentation.

Facial skin lesions present routinely to clinic and are largely dermatological in origin. Odontogenic infections are an unusual cause of facial lesion and are well-described in the dental literature; however they are regularly overlooked and mismanaged, often to considerable aesthetic detriment. We present such a case and highlight important avoidable pitfalls.

Acute vasculitis resulting in free flap failure: the importance of early recognition and options for management.

Unusual or unexpected medical causes for free flap failure do occur but are uncommon. We present a rare case of a fibula free flap failure due to an acute vasculitis which was undiagnosed until after the flap had failed. In addition to two successful flap salvages and intravenous heparin, an epoprostenol infusion was commenced but a third salvage was not successful. The vasculitis resulted in marked blood vessel wall thickening, and cutaneous manifestations which presented as late signs. High peri-nuclear anti nuclear cytoplasmic antibody (pANCA) and myeloperoxidase (MOP) titres were subsequently found and histology from several blood vessels showed marked inflammation throughout the wall. A diagnosis of microscopic polyangiitis was made and high dose steroids were subsequently commenced. Interestingly, he had vasculitis several years previously treated with oral steroids but had been discharged from the rheumatology clinic. This rare case illustrates the potential hazards of free flap surgery in the vasculitides and discusses the warning signs and various management options to reduce the likelihood of flap failure in these patients.

Is ultrasound alone sufficient for imaging superficial lobe benign parotid tumours before surgery?

Ultrasound (US) is a valuable technique for the assessment of salivary gland disease and regional nodes. When used in combination with fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) or core biopsy it has a high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of tumours. The role of additional cross-sectional imaging (computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance (MR)) to help with the diagnosis of benign parotid tumours is questionable except when there is deep lobe extension or the suggestion of malignancy. We investigated 37 FNAC-confirmed benign parotid tumours in patients who had undergone both US and CT or MRI investigations, to find out whether cross-sectional imaging had provided any further useful diagnostic information before operation. Three patients had bilateral Warthin tumours. Tumours ranged in size from 11 to 45 mm (mean 22). Of the 37 patients 35 (95%) had a clearly delineated mass in the superficial lobe of the parotid on US and no further information was gained from additional CT or MRI. On US 34 patients (92%) had features suggestive of a benign tumour, and three had features suggestive of malignancy but these were found to be benign on FNAC and after operation. CT or MRI confirmed these suspicious findings. In two different patients the deep margin was not visible on US (suggestive of deep lobe extension) and this was confirmed on MRI. The mean time delay between US and CT or MRI was four weeks (range 1-44). These results suggest that additional imaging is not required in most patients with a sonographically and FNAC confirmed benign lesion confined to the superficial lobe of the parotid and confirmed by FNAC or biopsy examination.

Litigation in National Health Service oral and maxillofacial surgery: review of the last 15 years.

Litigation claims are increasing in medicine but we know of little detailed analysis of those published concerning oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) despite information being freely available from the NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) under the Freedom of Information Act. We obtained information from the NHSLA on clinical and non-clinical negligence claims in OMFS from April 1995 to August 2010, and analysed the data with outcomes and a further breakdown of subspecialty. During the period 318 claims relating to OMFS were registered. As expected, because of the high volume of patients treated, the highest number of claims related to dentoalveolar surgery and minor oral surgery. The total amount paid out was in excess of £5 million, and the highest claim (more than £300,000) during the period was for misdiagnosis of an oral cancer. Litigation in OMFS is increasing, as is the number of cases that necessitate compensation by the NHSLA. We discuss the trends and implications.

The contemporary management of chyle leak following cervical thoracic duct damage.

The considerable anatomical variation of the thin walled cervical thoracic duct predisposes it to inadvertent damage during neck dissection. If this is not recognised at the time of surgery, a chyle leak can result in potentially serious complications as well as delaying the patient's discharge from hospital. This article summarises the basic anatomy of the terminal thoracic duct in the neck and discusses the pathophysiology of a chyle leak. We present the latest ideas for managing this problem when it is identified at the time of surgery, and review the diagnosis and contemporary management options available for dealing with this difficult problem when it is found to occur post-operatively.

Lymphoma presenting in the neck: current concepts in diagnosis.

Lymphoma commonly presents as a painless enlarging lump in the neck. With the establishment of the neck lump one-stop clinic, patients can be assessed promptly. Historically an open node biopsy specimen was required for definitive diagnosis, but in the last few years, many clinicians have advocated use of image-guided core biopsies, and some specialist centres monitor patients with fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) combined with other diagnostic techniques such as flow cytometry. In this article, we present current published papers on the management of suspected lymphoma in a patient who presents with a neck mass. We discuss the role of FNAC, core biopsy, open node biopsy, and imaging in the diagnosis of lymphoma before the patient is referred to the oncologist.

Serum testosterone levels in surgeons during major head and neck cancer surgery: a suppositional study.

Serum testosterone levels are known to have diurnal variation and to decrease by up to 2% per year after the age of 40. They can also be affected by stress and aggressive behaviour as well as various medical conditions. Although studies have investigated the role of mood and stress, none has specifically evaluated the effect of operative procedures on surgeons testosterone levels, particularly those in our own specialty, one that has historically been associated with perceived 'high testosterone' levels. We devised a suppositional study, particularly pertinent for publication at the beginning of April. This was a prospective randomised study of five male consultant maxillofacial surgeons (including two with male pattern baldness) and assayed serum testosterone levels at rest, during, and after a series of major ablative and reconstructive procedures. The resting testosterone levels were found to be similar in all surgeons (220 ± 120.9 mcg/ml). During major head and neck procedures, a statistically significant increase in serum testosterone was found (up to a maximum concentration of 1062.50 mcg/ml). Multivariate analysis revealed that the likely predictors of increasing serum testosterone were: size and extent of tumour and complexity, and type of microvascular reconstruction (all P<0.001). The long-term effects of chronically raised serum testosterone warrant further investigation but recent evidence has found that it may be cerebro-protective against conditions including Alzheimer's syndrome.

A synopsis of head and neck oncology and related papers published in the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 2009/10.

This review summarises all head and neck oncology and related papers published in the British Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (BJOMS) during the period 2009-2010. A similar review, covering the years 2007-2008 was published in the Journal in 2009 and was well received by readers, as evidenced by the high number of downloads from the BJOMS website. In this article, we include all head and neck oncology-related articles published in the print version of the journal during 2009/10 and concentrate on summarising the full length article papers. Compared to the previous 2-year period, there has been a 25% increase in number of articles published in this sub-specialty.

The first UK dental undergraduate programme for medical graduates--a student perspective.

The nature of the primary dental undergraduate qualification is continually evolving to keep pace with the ever changing climate of medical and dental education and postgraduate speciality training. In the aftermath of "Modernising Medical Careers", there has been a surge in interest in careers of dental origin by members of the medical profession, particularly in the specialities of oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS), oral medicine and oral surgery. Furthermore, following the suggestion by the recent Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board (PMETB) report into OMFS training that both registrable medical and dental degrees be obtainable by the age of 26 much attention has focussed on the entity of the accelerated undergraduate dental qualification. In this article we report our personal and educational experiences one year after enrolling in the UK's first official dental undergraduate degree for medical graduates, an accelerated three year BDS programme provided by King's College London.