Lipofilling of the atrophied lip in facial palsy patients.

AIM: Patients affected by unilateral facial palsy often show partial or complete atrophy of the orbicularis oris. The lower hemilip on the affected side may have partial functional recover due to direct reinnervation stemming from the unaffected side. This explains why atrophy of the paralysed side is sometimes limited. Negative esthetic and functional findings include partial invisibility of the vermillion border due to lip inversion resulting from muscle flaccidity, asymmetry of the lower lip, oral incompetence, and speech and nutrition impairments of variable degree. In this study, we used Coleman lipofilling as a secondary and ancillary procedure to consolidate the results already obtained with dynamic reanimation, specifically aiming to reduce the volumetric loss due to atrophy of the orbicularis oris muscle. METHODS: Eight patients underwent lipofilling to restore volumetric loss due to muscular denervation atrophy. Six of our patients were affected by inveterate facial palsy and one by an acute form of facial palsy. The last patient presented with high-grade bilateral upper lip atrophy due to Moebius syndrome. Two patients underwent a second lipofilling intervention. RESULTS: The esthetic volume increase and the ameliorated lip competence were immediately noticeable after the first lipofilling, to great patient satisfaction. As a result of the variable rate of resorption over time of the grafted fat, it may be advisable to repeat the procedure in some patients to maximize results. CONCLUSION: Lipofilling represents a useful and safe ancillary technique for camouflage of lower lip atrophy in paralysed patients.

Extensive rhabdomyoma of the head and neck region: a case report and a literature review.

Rhabdomyomas are rare mesenchymal benign tumors of striated muscle origin that can be classified into cardiac and extracardiac types. Cardiac rhabdomyomas are considered as hamartomatous lesion because of their association with phacomatosis. Extracardiac type is further classified into adult, fetal and genital form, depending on the individual tumor's degree of differentiation. Adult head and neck rhabdomyomas are rare pathologies of adult patients, with a male predominance. The occurrence of multifocality is a rare manifestation of this uncommon lesion. Presenting symptoms are related to the location and dimension of the tumors and they include upper airway obstruction, Eustachian tube dysfunction, dysphagia and mucosal and neck mass. Because of their high rate of recurrence, radical resection is the treatment of choice of this kind of tumors. In this article is reported a rare and particularly large case of head and neck adult rhabdomyoma, presenting with an history of sleep apnea and night-time stridor.

[Double innervation (facial/masseter) on the gracilis flap, in the middle face reanimation in the management of facial paralysis: a new concept]. / Double innervation (facial/masseter) sur le lambeau gracile dans les réanimations du tiers moyen de la face lors de la prise en charge des paralysies faciales : nouveau concept.

INTRODUCTION: The facial paralysis is a non-rare condition that has very disabling functional, morphological and psychological repercussions. The current gold standard in facial reanimation is revascularized re-innervated muscle transfers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this paper, we report the results of a new method using the gracilis flap with a double innervation on the masseter motor nerve and the controlateral facial nerve via a sural graft in a single stage intervention, on a series of six patients. RESULTS: No failure was observed. The average delay of a voluntary contraction was 3.8months, and 7.2months for a spontaneous one. Three of the six patients had "excellent" results according to the Terzis and Noah classification, two were classified as "good" and one "average". DISCUSSION: A choice is to be made between a method advocating a natural and spontaneous dynamicity (controlateral facial nerve stimulus) and a method focusing on the quality and quantity of contractions (ipsilateral trijeminal stimulus). In this new technique, we combine the two methods: a free gracilis transfer with a dual innervation on the healthy controlateral facial nerve via a sural graft, on one hand, and a second anastomosis on the ipsilateral masseter nerve, on the other hand. CONCLUSION: This new proposed method seems to be, according to our results, a reliable technique rallying voluntary contraction and emotional smile.

Repair of a perforated sinus membrane with a palatal fibromucosal graft: a case report.

The sinus lift procedure in association with dental implant placement and autologous bone grafting enables clinicians to achieve the prosthetic rehabilitation of the posterior edentulous maxilla, when the vertical height of the atrophic crest is reduced. The most commonly reported intraoperative complication of sinus augmentation is membrane perforation, which may lead to infection, with the risk of graft loss or resorption, and acute or chronic sinusitis. We present a technique for repairing a perforated Schnei-derian membrane with a de-epithelialized fibromucosal graft harvested from the palate of a 50-year-old man. In the postoperative period, no wound infections, sinusitis, or bleeding were observed. This technique allowed good prosthetic rehabilitation 3 months postoperatively. This technical procedure is a quick and easy way to treat this surgical complication, allowing repair of the Schneiderian membrane perforation with autologous tissue, without other surgical accesses or need to modify the existing surgical access. In addition, our procedure causes no patient discomfort or adds significant morbidity, with only a moderate increase in surgical time compared to the planned procedure.

Miniretromandibular access for mandibular condyle biopsies.

AIM: Mandibular condylar biopsy is an important tool in defining various condylar lesions and it could become necessary in establishing a correct diagnosis to plan the adequate treatment of the condylar lesions. METHODS: From May to June 2009, two patients affected by a miofibroma and an osteoma of the condyle underwent an open-field biopsy through a mini-retromandibular access. The approach was devised to be curative in case of benign lesion or just diagnostic in case of malignant or doubtful hystology. RESULTS: In both cases, mandibular condyle biopsies were diagnostic and curative at the same time, allowing both the hystologic diagnosis and the complete removal of the bony lesions. CONCLUSION: The present technique seems to be a valid and ideal technique, because ease and quick while simultaneously leaves little esthetic reliquates.

Lingual nerve lesion during ranula surgical treatment: case report.

Iatrogenic lingual nerve (LN) injuries are quite common in oral surgery both in maxillo-facial surgery and in oral surgery. LN runs superficially into the lateral mouth floor just beneath the mucous layer and this position enhances damage frequency. This article lists the different aetiologies of iatrogenic LN injuries and it almost focuses on lesions due to surgical treatment of ranulas. In the case report a LN lesion due to oral ranula excision is discussed; the patient experienced anaesthesia and hyperpatia in the corrisponded tongue side. It was treated with a microneurosugical anastomosis of LN, after amputation neuroma excision. The partial and definitive recovery of perception happened in six months and was deemed satisfying with 70% of functionality restored (results compared with the functionality of the contralateral side). An algorithm for diagnosis and therapy indication for iatrogenic injuries to nerves is also proposed. In case of surgical treatment, funcitonal recovery manifests after 4-6 month; a functional recovery of 70% of total nerve function is possible. The variable that most affects nerve functional recovery is surgical treatment timing; it must be performed as soon as possible.

Smell and taste recovery in coronavirus disease 2019 patients: a 60-day objective and prospective study.

BACKGROUND: The long-term recovery rate of chemosensitive functions in coronavirus disease 2019 patients has not yet been determined. METHOD: A multicentre prospective study on 138 coronavirus disease 2019 patients was conducted. Olfactory and gustatory functions were prospectively evaluated for 60 days. RESULTS: Within the first 4 days of coronavirus disease 2019, 84.8 per cent of patients had chemosensitive dysfunction that gradually improved over the observation period. The most significant increase in chemosensitive scores occurred in the first 10 days for taste and between 10 and 20 days for smell. At the end of the observation period (60 days after symptom onset), 7.2 per cent of the patients still had severe dysfunctions. The risk of developing a long-lasting disorder becomes significant at 10 days for taste (odds ratio = 40.2, 95 per cent confidence interval = 2.204-733.2, p = 0.013) and 20 days for smell (odds ratio = 58.5, 95 per cent confidence interval = 3.278-1043.5, p = 0.005). CONCLUSION: Chemosensitive disturbances persisted in 7.2 per cent of patients 60 days after clinical onset. Specific therapies should be initiated in patients with severe olfactory and gustatory disturbances 20 days after disease onset.

Lipofilling of the upper eyelid to treat paralytic lagophthalmos.

Lagophthalmos is one of the most unpleasant and dangerous conditions that affect patients with facial palsy. The lack of ocular protection leads to corneal problems (such as conjunctival infections, acute and chronic keratitis, corneal ulcerations, and blindness). A dynamic reanimation of blinking eyelids is the therapeutic gold standard. However, success is not guaranteed with these dynamic techniques; even if results are good, blinking is usually restored within a year of the initial operation. Procedures that act more rapidly and have a higher success rate are needed. We proposed that lipofilling of the upper eyelid would improve eye closure, exploit the advantages of using autologous fat, and avoid the risks of exposure or migration associated with loading the lid with gold. Between 2012 and September 2018, we did upper eyelid lipofilling procedures for 75 patients with unilateral facial palsy. The main favourable result of lipofilling of the upper lid was the immediate improvement in corneal discomfort. Everybody described a partial to total increase in corneal comfort postoperatively. In the treatment of paralytic lagophthalmos, lipofilling of the upper eyelid produces favourable aesthetic and functional results, ocular health is restored, and the patients' quality of life is improved.

Three-dimensional assessment of restored smiling mobility after reanimation of unilateral facial palsy by triple innervation technique.

The aim of this study was to assess surgically restored facial mobility using an optical 3D instrument. Eleven patients (age range 42-76 years) with unilateral facial palsy, treated by triple innervation procedure (masseteric and partial hypoglossal reinnervation, plus double cross-face facial grafting), performed five facial animations: rest position, smiling by contracting the healthy side, clenching the teeth, and pushing the tongue against the lower incisors and Mona Lisa smiling. These were recorded by stereophotogrammetry. Sixty healthy subjects were also recorded. The 3D reconstruction of each facial expression was registered onto the rest position scan, and the root mean square (RMS) point-to-point distance between the two 3D surfaces was calculated automatically for the facial thirds. RMS values on the rehabilitated hemiface were 74.8% (upper third), 46.6% (middle third), and 54.1% (lower third) of those recorded in healthy subjects. RMS values were higher in the middle and lower thirds than in the upper third, and during smile provided by masseteric stimulus (P<0.05). The rehabilitated hemiface differed more from healthy subject values than the healthy hemiface did (P<0.05). On average, patients were more asymmetric than healthy subjects (P=0.004). The proposed method is non-invasive and non-contact, and it can quantify localized facial movements after surgical procedures.

Impact of COVID-19 epidemic on maxillofacial surgery in Italy.

Maxillofacial departments in 23 surgical units in Italy have been increasingly involved in facing the COVID-19 emergency. Elective surgeries have been progressively postponed to free up beds and offer human and material resources to those infected. We compiled an inventory of 32 questions to evaluate the impact of the SARS-COV2 epidemic on maxillofacial surgery in 23 selected Italian maxillofacial departments. The questionnaire focused on three different aspects: the variation of the workload, showing both a reduction of the number of team members (-16% among specialists, -11% among residents) due to reallocation or contamination and a consistent reduction of elective activities (the number of outpatient visits cancelled during the first month of the COVID-19 epidemic was about 10 000 all over Italy), while only tumour surgery and trauma surgery has been widely guaranteed; the screening procedures on patients and physicians (22% of maxillofacial units found infected surgeons, which is 4% of all maxillofacial surgeons); and the availability of Personal Protective Equipment, is only considered to be partial in 48% of Maxillofacial departments. This emergency has forced those of us in the Italian health system to change the way we work, but only time will prove if these changes have been effective.

Surgical therapy of oral cancer.

Treatment of squamous cell carcinoma, 90% of oral cancers, is unimodal (surgery vs. radiotherapy) for small tumors, multimodal (surgery and radiotherapy or chemoradiotherapy) for big ones. If a patient undergoes surgical treatment for an oral cancer, this implies two equally important phases: the resection of the tumor and reconstruction of the operated region. The sole eradication of the tumor, though extremely important, cannot be considered the single goal of the treatment. Indeed, negative functional and esthetic outcomes of surgery, affecting negatively the quality of life of the patient must be avoided as much as possible. In order to achieve this result, it is fundamental to utilize surgical accesses that allow the safe and complete removal of the lesion, minimizing at the same time esthetic and functional impact. It is also necessary to reconstruct the amputated region to the best of actual possibilities. Modern surgery aims to restitutio ad integrum of operated regions. That is particularly important in tumor surgery of the maxillo-facial area, where mutilations may worsen patients' quality of life. All these concepts apply, excluding only rare exceptions, also in advanced cases, cases with poor prognosis, patients with suboptimal general conditions, older people independently to the residual life expectancy. On the contrary, if prognosis is unfavorable and life expectancy brief, residual time should be as livable as possible. Reconstructive microsurgery, widely spread during the last 20 years, led to the full implementation of this concept and to the accomplishment of surgical operations once not even conceivable.

The folded radial forearm flap in soft-palate and tonsillary fossa reconstruction: technical note.

Excision of the tonsillary fossa and soft palate leaves functional sequelae unless followed by a well-planned reconstruction phase. This must aim at restoring the pharyngeo-palatal structure, covering the dissected surfaces, and restoring continuity to the lingual and inferior alveolar nerves when these are sectioned. A reconstruction model of this complex three-dimensional anatomical area is proposed that uses a microvascular fasciocutaneous forearm flap adapted to the individual patient. Twelve patients were operated on, following this model. All flaps survived intact. Velopharyngeal function was optimal in 11 cases (92%), suboptimal in 1 case. Patients also achieved good functional recovery (speech, swallowing and chewing). Careful three-dimensional planning of reconstruction for the tonsillary and soft-palate area makes it possible to restore velopharyngeal function to levels close to the preoperative situation.

Ossification of vascular pedicle in fibular free flaps: a report of four cases.

The fibular free flap is the most widely used flap for jaw reconstruction. Flap contouring requires removal of bone excess in the proximal segment by a subperiosteal dissection, preserving vascular connections between the pedicle and the bone and leaving well vascularized periosteum attached to the vascular pedicle. Among about 100 reconstructions with fibular flaps, 4 cases were observed of abnormal ossification along the vascular pedicle. Periosteum preserves its osteogenic capability after transposition, especially in a revascularized flap; this characteristic, together with the direct contact with the bone, allows the possibility of new bone formation along the pedicle. It would appear necessary to change the technique of reducing fibular excess, with removal of periosteum together with the bone, in order to avoid the complication described.

Pericranium graft in reconstructive surgery of atrophied maxillary bones.

In preprosthetic surgery the autologous bone is universally considered the gold standard. Calvaria is, among many options, one of the preferred for its unique characteristics of hardness, easy of harvest and very low morbidity at donor site. Moreover, it gives the possibility of harvesting the pericranium. This technique, recently introduced in common practice in Milan, allows to harvest a large quantity of periosteum to cover bone grafts perioperativly. Periosteal tissue is used to cover bone grafts for two reasons. First, it would provide a layer of tissue that, thanks to its osteogenic potential, would prevent bone resorption. Second, this would interpose a layer of soft tissue to act as a cushion between the bone and mucosal flap to minimize the risk of wound dehiscence, that would bring to bone exposure and consequent failure of reconstruction. Five jaw reconstructions were performed with autologous bone and pericranium. In all cases the outcome was good, the grafts took with correct bone volume preservation. Implants were positioned according to prosthetic needs. In one case a vascular necrosis of a mucosal flap occurred. Bone exposure was prevented by the periosteum, which was revascularized after few days, allowing bone integration. Considering its potential protective capability towards bone grafts and the lack of donor site morbidity, this technique should be considered as a standard procedure in preprosthetic reconstructive surgery.

Surgical treatment of bifid mental nerve damaged by root canal therapy. A case report.

This article describes the successful surgical treatment of a case of damage to the inferior alveolar nerve, due to inadvertent extrusion of endodontic material into the mandibular canal. The accident was favoured by an anatomical variant of the nerve canal ending with a double mental foramen, already described in the literature. The complex surgical operation of uncertain outcome was dictated by neuralgia refractory to medical treatment, rather than hypoesthesia associated with compression of the nerve trunk. Problems related to loss of sensitivity and possible causes of nerve damage (traumatic, pathological and iatrogenic) are discussed.

Three-dimensional superimposition for patients with facial palsy: an innovative method for assessing the success of facial reanimation procedures.

Facial palsy is a severe condition that may be ameliorated by facial reanimation, but there is no consensus about how to judge its success. In this study we aimed to test a new method for assessing facial movements based on 3-dimensional analysis of the facial surfaces. Eleven patients aged between 42 and 77 years who had recently been affected by facial palsy (onset between 6 and 18 months) were treated by an operation based on triple innervation: the masseteric to temporofacial nerve branch, 30% of the hypoglossal fibres to the cervicofacial nerve branch, and the contralateral facial nerve through two cross-face sural nerve grafts. Each patient had five stereophotogrammetric scans: at rest, smiling on the healthy side (facial stimulus), biting (masseteric stimulus), moving the tongue (hypoglossal stimulus), and corner-of-the-mouth smile (Mona Lisa). Each scan was superimposed onto the facial model of the "rest" position, and the point-to-point root mean square (RMS) value was automatically calculated on both the paralysed and the healthy side, together with an index of asymmetry. One-way and two-way ANOVA tests, respectively, were applied to verify the significance of possible differences in the RMS and asymmetry index according to the type of stimulus (p=0.0329) and side (p<0.0001). RMS differed significantly according to side between the facial stimulus and the masseteric one on the paralysed side (p=0.0316). Facial stimulus evoked the most asymmetrical movement, whereas the masseteric produced the most symmetrical expression. The method can be used for assessing facial movements after facial reanimation.

Surgical approaches to cavernous haemangiomas of the orbit.

Cavernous haemangiomas are the most common orbital masses and the second most common cause of unilateral proptosis after thyroid ophthalmopathy. We retrospectively analysed 19 patients with retrobulbar cavernous haemangiomas, 9 of whom had lateral orbitotomy to remove retrobulbar cavernous haemangiomas located superior (n=4), inferior (n=2) or lateral (n=3) to the optic nerve. Seven patients had lateral orbitotomy together with an anterior medial approach to gain access to retrobulbar cavernous haemangiomas located medially to the optic nerve in the posterior half of the orbit. An anterior approach was used in 3 patient with an anteriorly located cavernous haemangioma. We describe here the planning of surgical treatment based on the site of the lesion.

The free fibula flap for treating benign mandibular lesions.

UNLABELLED: A variety of benign lesions that are typically treated conservatively can affect the mandible. The treatment must be radical when these lesions are locally aggressive and involve the perimandibular soft tissues or involve most of the thickness of the mandible. The main treatment is mandibular resection and reconstruction with bone grafts, mainly iliac crest bone grafts for segmental mandibulectomy or a calvaria bone graft for resection without interruption of the mandible body. These grafts are limited due to the possibility of infection and the unpredictable long-term resorption. Free flap surgery, particularly with fibula free flaps, represents a new era in mandibular reconstruction. This technique has similar donor site morbidity, while the transferred bone resists infection and bone resorption. These advantages are achieved at the cost of a procedure that is about 1 h longer when performed by an experienced microsurgical team. We report our experience with mandibular reconstruction following the surgical resection of benign lesions in 7 patients. All the reconstructions had good RESULTS: After reconstruction, the facial morphology showed restored symmetry of the lower third profile in all patients. The functional results were satisfactory, with restored mandibular function in all cases. No signs of recurrence have appeared in any patient after a mean follow-up of 24 months.

Prevention of bisphosphonate-related mandibular fractures.

Mandibular fracture is usually the clinical end of bisphosphonate-related osteonecrosis of the jaw. This is a painful complication and patients cannot feed as usual, with a worsening of their quality of life. The goal of treatment in bisphosphonate related osteonecrosis of jaw (BRONJ) patients is to slow progression of bone necrosis. We present a novel technique for treatment of severe mandibular BRONJ in stage 3 patients that present with a high risk to develop fracture, since they have a residual unaffected mandibular bone height less than 6 mm. We treated 10 patients in this clinical situation with an extra-oral application of a reconstructive plate superficial to the platysma, to keep the plate separated from the infected site to avoid contamination and consequent need of removal, followed by an intraoral approach for active curettage of mandibular necrosis. The preservation of blood supply to the mandible and avoidance of direct contact of the infected site with the reconstructive plate are some advantages of this technique. This plate allows enhancement of mandibular strength, allowing proper treatment of the BRONJ site on the oral side without fear of causing a mandibular fracture when the residual mandible is thin. This technical solution guarantees these patients an extended disease-free period since it is effective in preventing mandibular fractures in patients with low mandibular residual height left after the BRONJ onset.