Raman difference spectroscopy and U-Net convolutional neural network for molecular analysis of cutaneous neurofibroma.

In Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), peripheral nerve sheaths tumors are common, with cutaneous neurofibromas resulting in significant aesthetic, painful and functional problems requiring surgical removal. To date, determination of adequate surgical resection margins-complete tumor removal while attempting to preserve viable tissue-remains largely subjective. Thus, residual tumor extension beyond surgical margins or recurrence of the disease may frequently be observed. Here, we introduce Shifted-Excitation Raman Spectroscopy in combination with deep neural networks for the future perspective of objective, real-time diagnosis, and guided surgical ablation. The obtained results are validated through established histological methods. In this study, we evaluated the discrimination between cutaneous neurofibroma (n = 9) and adjacent physiological tissues (n = 25) in 34 surgical pathological specimens ex vivo at a total of 82 distinct measurement loci. Based on a convolutional neural network (U-Net), the mean raw Raman spectra (n = 8,200) were processed and refined, and afterwards the spectral peaks were assigned to their respective molecular origin. Principal component and linear discriminant analysis was used to discriminate cutaneous neurofibromas from physiological tissues with a sensitivity of 100%, specificity of 97.3%, and overall classification accuracy of 97.6%. The results enable the presented optical, non-invasive technique in combination with artificial intelligence as a promising candidate to ameliorate both, diagnosis and treatment of patients affected by cutaneous neurofibroma and NF1.

A new surgical approach to treatment of bilateral syngnathia in a patient with popliteal pterygium-syndrome.

This case describes the treatment of syngnathia with a popliteal-pterygium syndrome. Although short-term successful surgical treatment has been described in literature, long-term follow up is essential, as the mouth opening limitations can be repetitively reoccurring. This requires new, individual treatment strategies as demonstrated in this case. A young patient is shown, who is successfully undergoing an alloplastic temporomandibular joint replacement to improve mouth opening, increasing the posterior airway space and facilitating the food intake.

A Connective Tissue Neoplasm of the Mandibular Angle Mimicking Stafne's Bone Cavity on Panoramic View.

BACKGROUND: When assessing sharply delineated bone lesions of the mandibular angle on X-rays, numerous diagnoses must be considered. The static bone cavity (Stafne's bone cavity, SBC) is a harmless lingual bone depression of the mandibular angle that usually does not require any treatment. It is essential to differentiate this bone deformity from other lesions that may require treatment. CASE REPORT: The 22-year-old patient was referred for further diagnosis and therapy after osteolysis of the mandible was noticed on a panoramic view (PV). The location and size of the lesion was typical of SBC. Only the three-dimensional representation of the lesion on cone beam computed tomographs revealed an intraosseous lesion. Histological examination of the lesion provided evidence of a fibrous neoplasm. CONCLUSION: The typical image of SBC is ambiguous on plain radiographs such as PV. The radiological diagnosis of the lesion should be based on the representation of the region of interest in different planes.