Factors associated with the quality of life of subjects with facial disfigurement due to surgical treatment of head and neck cancer.

BACKGROUND: Facial disfigurement has been considered one of the most challenging consequences of the surgical treatment for head and neck cancer patients, mainly due to the importance of the facial region for the personal identity, body self-image and interpersonal interactions, which might affect negatively the quality of life. The aim of this study was to assess factors associated with the quality of life of subjects with facial disfigurement due to surgical treatment. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Clinical data were retrieved from 103 patient's medical records and quality of life data were collected using the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy (FACT-H&N) questionnaire. Moreover, the degree of facial disfigurement was classified by means of a specific ordinal scale. RESULTS: Data from the FACT-H&N questionnaire showed that the domain directly related to head and neck symptoms was considered the most impacted, while emotional domain was the least affected. Lower quality of life was associated with sequels in the neck and/or lower third of the face (ß=-0.39; p=0.001), a higher level of disfigurement (ß=-0.29; p=0.016) and female gender (ß=-0.20; p=0.038). CONCLUSIONS: Disfigurement due to surgical treatment was significantly associated with the functional dimension of the patients, especially in extensive sequels in the cervical and lower regions of the face.

Reliability of a two-colour chewing gum test to assess masticatory performance in complete denture wearers.

The aim of this study was to test the reliability of a method to measure the masticatory performance of complete denture wearers employing a colour-mixing ability test and assessment by visual and electronic colourimetric analysis. A sample of 75 subjects was selected from patients who received new conventional complete dentures. Masticatory tests were performed using a two-colour chewing gum that was masticated for 5, 10, 20, 30 and 50 chewing cycles, performed in a random order. The mixing level of the two colours of the chewed gum was assessed visually by two independent raters based on a 5-point ordinal scale. The specimens were flattened into a 1-mm-width wafer, scanned and saved as a two-sided digital image. Each pair of images was submitted to an electronic colourimetric analysis to assess the level of colour mixture, measured by the circular variance of hue (VOH). Overall inter- and intra-rater agreements in visual analysis were 64% and 68%, respectively (almost 99% of scores ranged within ±1 point), whilst overall weighted kappa was >0.80. A proportional increase in the level of mixture occurred with increased number of chewing cycles (P < .001). Similarly, VOH and the visual analysis were highly correlated (r = -.89; P < .001). Bland-Altman plots revealed excellent agreement and extremely low systematic error between duplicated VOH measures. It was concluded that the two-colour chewing gum test is a reliable method to assess the masticatory performance in complete denture wearers using both visual and electronic colourimetric analyses.

Mandibular complete denture versus single-implant overdenture: a systematic review of patient-reported outcomes.

The single-implant mandibular overdenture (SIMO) has been proposed as an alternative for edentulous patients who are poorly adapted to their dentures due to low retention and stability of the conventional mandibular complete denture (CD). However, there is a lack of evidence regarding the effectiveness of SIMO, which can be measured by examining patient perception of treatment effects. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the comparative results of CD and SIMO treatments using patient-reported outcome measures. A literature search was carried out in PubMed, Scopus and Cochrane Central databases. The search included studies published up to July 2017. The focus question was: 'Do single-implant mandibular overdentures improve patient-reported outcomes compared to conventional complete dentures in edentulous patients?' Eligible studies were randomised clinical trials (RCT) and prospective studies. After initial screening for eligibility and full-text analysis, 11 studies were included for data extraction and quality assessment (five parallel-group RCTs, two crossover RCTs and four prospective studies). All studies reported marked improvement in satisfaction with the dentures and quality of life measures after SIMO treatment, irrespective of variations in implant treatment protocols and retention systems. Methodological considerations revealed a lack of evidence from RCTs on the comparative effectiveness of the two treatment strategies. Hence, although available evidence suggests considerable improvement in patient-reported outcomes following the insertion of a single implant to retain a mandibular denture, further well-designed comparative studies between SIMO and CD are required to improve the level of evidence and to support the indication of SIMO treatment in routine practice.

Dual origin of the vertebral artery mimicking dissection.

Vertebral artery injury may occur at the time of cervical fracture or dislocation. Congenital vertebral artery variations, especially a double vertebral artery origin, may be responsible for angiographic findings that mimic vertebral artery dissection. Two cases of cervical spine fracture with ipsilateral double vertebral artery are presented. Conventional cerebral angiography is the easiest and best way to make this diagnosis and to exclude vertebral artery dissection.