[Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for pain management in spine bone metastases]. / Experiencia inicial de radioterapia estereotáxica (SBRT) en metástasis óseas de columna vertebral.

BACKGROUND: Treatment of spine bone metastases with stereotactic radio-therapy (SBRT) may produce greater pain relief than palliative radiotherapy. AIM: To evaluate the analgesic response to SBRT. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A search was made in an electronic database of all patients treated by SBRT in our center. We found 20 patients that were treated with SBRT in the spine on 24 sites (lesions). Analgesic response was evaluated at 3 and 6 months after SBRT. Other factors such as age, sex, functional status, diagnosis, metastasis location, dosimetry and toxicity of the treatment were also described. RESULTS: The median follow-up was 8.1 months. Complete pain relief occurred at three months in 74% of the treated sites. At three months, 78% of the patients presented a functional status 0 (ECOG). The median dose used was 24 Gy in 2 fractions. No cases of G3 or greater toxicity were recorded. CONCLUSIONS: The analgesic response to SBRT seems to be better than that reported for palliative radiotherapy.

Experiencia inicial de radioterapia estereotáxica (SBRT) en metástasis óseas de columna vertebral / Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) for pain management in spine bone metastases

Background: Treatment of spine bone metastases with stereotactic radio-therapy (SBRT) may produce greater pain relief than palliative radiotherapy. Aim: To evaluate the analgesic response to SBRT. Material and Methods: A search was made in an electronic database of all patients treated by SBRT in our center. We found 20 patients that were treated with SBRT in the spine on 24 sites (lesions). Analgesic response was evaluated at 3 and 6 months after SBRT. Other factors such as age, sex, functional status, diagnosis, metastasis location, dosimetry and toxicity of the treatment were also described. Results: The median follow-up was 8.1 months. Complete pain relief occurred at three months in 74% of the treated sites. At three months, 78% of the patients presented a functional status 0 (ECOG). The median dose used was 24 Gy in 2 fractions. No cases of G3 or greater toxicity were recorded. Conclusions: The analgesic response to SBRT seems to be better than that reported for palliative radiotherapy.

Síndrome de nariz vacía / Empty nose syndrome

El síndrome de nariz vacía es una enfermedad de reciente descripción, que no tiene una definición clínica clara. Se puede originar como complicación de la cirugía de resección de cornetes, en especial del inferior. La fisiopatología no está del todo definida, pero es probable que posterior a la resección de cornetes se altere la permeabilidad nasal, interfiriendo con los mecanismos neurosensitivos y con las funciones de los cornetes. Su síntoma principal, es la obstrucción nasal paradójica. El diagnóstico es clínico, basado en los síntomas con los hallazgos de una cavidad nasal amplia posterior a la cirugía nasal. El tratamiento es difícil por lo subjetivo de los síntomas, prefiriendo en un comienzo el tratamiento médico y reservando la cirugía para casos más severos. Lo más importante es la prevención, realizando cirugías lo más conservadora posibles de la anatomía de la cavidad nasal.

The Empty Nose Syndrome is a recently described disease, which has no clear clinical definition. It is a rare complication of turbinate surgery especially in the inferior turbinectomy. The pathophysiology is unclear, but after turbinectomy the nasal patency could be affected and this can interfere with neurosensory mechanisms and functions of the turbinates. The most common symptom is the paradoxical nasal obstruction. The diagnosis is clinical, based on symptoms with the discovery of a wide nasal cavity after nasal surgery. Treatment is difficult because of the subjective symptoms, initially preferring medical treatment and surgery is reserved for more severe cases. Most important is the prevention, being as conservative as possible with the nasal cavity.

Avances en corteza auditiva / Advances in auditory cortex

El sistema auditivo nos permite detectar e interpretar las señales acústicas del medio ambiente y así modificar nuestro comportamiento. En humanos la corteza auditiva se ubica en el giro temporal superior del lóbulo temporal. Esta corteza presenta una organización estructural y funcional característica, que se ha identificado en muchas especies de mamíferos. Las áreas de organización de la corteza auditiva son: (i) una región central denominada corteza auditiva primaria o core, que corresponde al primer nivel de procesamiento, cuyas características cito-arquitectónicas y funcionales principales son poseer una capa IV prominente y presentar una organización tonotópica especular. Además, (ii) una región circundante conocida como cinturón o belt, que corresponde a las cortezas secundarias que participan de la localización espacial y reconocimiento del sonido, como también en el procesamiento del habla. Por último, (iii) las áreas de asociación auditiva integran la información auditiva con la de otros sistemas sensoriales. En este artículo se revisan las bases neuroanatómicas y las propiedades funcionales de la corteza auditiva, las que constituyen pilares fundamentales para el desarrollo de métodos diagnósticos y terapéuticos del procesamiento auditivo central.

The auditory system allows us to detect and interpret the acoustic signals of the environment and thus change our behavior. In humans, the auditory cortex is located in the superior temporal gyrus of the temporal lobe. This cortex has a characteristic structural organization and functionality that have been identified in many mammalian species. The auditory cortex has different organizational areas: (i) a core called "primary auditory cortex," which corresponds to the first level of processing, and its cyto-architectural and physiological main features are to present a prominent layer IV and to display a mirror-tonotopic organization. In addition, (ii) a surrounding region known as belt that corresponds to the secondary auditory cortices and participates in the location and recognition of sound, as well as in speech processing. Finally, (iii) auditory association areas that integrate auditory information with other sensory systems. In this article, the neuroanatomical bases and functional properties of auditory cortex processing are reviewed. These topics constitute the foundations for the development of diagnostic tools and therapeutic procedures of central auditory processing.

Neumoencéfalo otológico espontáneo, revisión bibliográfica a partir de un caso clínico / Spontaneous otogenic pneumocephalus. Literature review from a clinical case

El neumoencéfalo espontáneo de origen otológico es una patología potencialmente mortal, infrecuente y escasamente reportada en la literatura. Resulta interesante conocer su presentación clínica y manejo. Para el diagnóstico es importante tener la sospecha clínica y el estudio de imágenes con tomografía computarizada (TC) habitualmente muestra la dehiscencia en el hueso temporal. El tratamiento debe tener un enfoque multidisciplinario. La decisión de tratamiento conservador y quirúrgico va estar determinado por la gravedad del paciente y características del defecto.

Pneumocephalus otic spontaneous origin is a potentially fatal disease, infrequent and rarely reported in the literature. It is interesting to know its clinical presentation and management. To diagnose it is important to clinical suspicion and imaging study with CT usually shows dehiscence of the temporal bone. Treatment should be a multidisciplinary approach. The decision of conservative and surgical treatment will be determined by the severity of the patient and defect characteristics.

Halitosis en otorrinolaringología / Halitosis in otolaryngology

La halitosis es una afección muy prevalence en la población mundial que genera un gran impacto en la calidad de vida de los pacientes y es un motivo frecuente de consulta en la práctica clínica diaria en otorrinolaringología, presentándonos un gran desafío para el manejo de esta condición. En general se considera que es exclusiva de la odontología, por lo que resulta interesante revisar en este artículo los factores etiológicos involucrados y los avances en diagnóstico y tratamiento.

Halitosis is a very prevalent disease in the world population that generates a great impact on the quality of life of patients and is a frequent complaint in daily clinical practice in otolaryngology, presenting us with a great challenge for the management of this condition. It is generally considered to be exclusive of dentistry, so it is interesting to review in this article the etiological factors involved and advances in diagnosis and treatment.

Keratosis obturans y colesteatoma del conducto auditivo externo: caso clínico y revisión de la literatura / Keratosis obturans and external auditory canal cholesteatoma: case report and review of the literature

La keratosis obturans y el colesteatoma del conducto auditivo externo son dos condiciones caracterizadas por la acumulación patológica de material queratinizado en el oído externo. El primero se presenta con un crecimiento circunferencial que ocluye y remodela el conducto, usualmente sin erosionarlo, mientras que el segundo se caracteriza por erosionar un área del conducto, con necrosis y secuestro óseo. El diagnóstico diferencial entre estas dos entidades es importante, ya que difieren en la presentación clínica, el comportamiento biológico y las complicaciones asociadas. Esto puede verse reflejado en cambios en el manejo terapéutico de estos pacientes.

Keratosis obturans and external auditory canal cholesteatoma are two conditions characterized by the pathological accumulation of keratinized debris in the external ear. The former shows a circumferential growth that occludes and remodels the canal, usually without erosion, whereas the latter is characterized by erosion of part of the canal, with necrosis and bone sequestration. Establishing a differential diagnosis between both diseases is important, because they differ in clinical presentation, biological behavior and associated complications. This can be reflected in the therapeutic management of these patients.