Auris, Nasus, Larynx

OBJECTIVE: Precise endoscopic skills are critical for endoscopic endonasal surgery (EES) to ensure patient safety, as well as to succeed as a surgeon. Among these skills, basic skills such as hand-eye coordination and bimanual dexterity are the most important skills for novice surgeons. However, there is no proficiency-based training for the basic skills in EES. In this study, we aimed to develop a proficiency-based training curriculum for beginners in EES using tractable tasks and to assess the curriculum's validity and educational benefits...

OBJECTIVE: Sialocele that develops after parotid surgery often prolongs the treatment period and stresses both the surgeon and patient. The extent of surgery and tumor size are known to be associated with sialocele occurrence. We investigated the incidence of post-parotidectomy sialocele and the associated risk factors, with a focus on tumor size. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 172 patients who underwent parotidectomy between January 2013 and May 2020 at Haeundae Paik Hospital, Inje University of Korea...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate swallowing in patients who underwent CO2 LASER Partial Epiglottectomy (CO2-LPE) for Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome and to assess the risk of aspiration with this technique. MATERIAL & METHODS: Chart review of adult patients who underwent CO2-LPE between 2016 and 2020, in a secondary care hospital. Patients underwent surgery for OSAS, in accordance to Drug Induced Sleep Endoscopy findings and an objective swallowing evaluation was done at least 6 months after surgery...

OBJECTIVES: Medical device-related pressure ulcer (MDRPU) is a skin or subcutaneous tissue injury caused by medical devices. Skin protectants have been used to prevent MDRPU in other fields. In endoscopic sinonasal surgery (ESNS), rigid endoscopes and forceps can cause MDRPU; however, detailed investigations have not been conducted. This study aimed to investigate the frequency of MDRPU in ESNS and the preventive effects of skin protectants METHODS: Thirty-nine patients who received ESNS and consented to study participation were randomly assigned to the "protective agent" (n = 18) or "control" (n = 21) group...

OBJECTIVE: The relationship between the stapedius muscle and the vertical part of the facial nerve is important for surgery. The study aims to understand the spatial relationship between the stapedius muscle and the vertical part of the facial nerve in ultra-high-resolution computed tomography (U-HRCT) images. METHODS: A total of 105 ears from the heads of 54 human cadavers were analyzed using U-HRCT. The location and direction of the stapedius muscle were evaluated with the facial nerve as the reference...

OBJECTIVE: To elucidate the relationship between vertigo and EH volume after medical treatment, we investigated changes in endolymphatic hydrops (EH) volume using inner ear magnetic resonance imaging (ieMRI) in relation to clinical results for vertigo and hearing after administration of the anti-vertiginous medications betahistine, adenosine triphosphate (ATP), isosorbide (ISO), and saireito (SAI) for Meniere's disease (MD). METHODS: We retrospectively enrolled 202 consecutive patients diagnosed with unilateral MD from 2015 to 2021 and assigned them to four groups: Group I (G-I), symptomatic oral medication with betahistine only (CONT); Group II (G-II), inner ear vasoactive oral medication (ATP); Group III (G-III), osmotic diuretic oral medication (ISO); and Group IV (G-IV), kampo oral medication (SAI)...

OBJECTIVE: Flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) is widely performed to determine the safety of oral intake. However, evaluation results can vary among examiners depending on their experience. To analyze the impact of such differences, we investigated the diet provided for patients with swallowing impairment evaluated by experienced and inexperienced examiners. METHODS: We included 20 subjects with swallowing impairment. They underwent FEES twice, once by an experienced examiner (EE) and once by an inexperienced examiner (IE), in random order...

OBJECTIVE: Large vestibular aqueduct syndrome (LVAS) is one of the etiology of hearing loss. Clinically, we observed that the VA size of patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL) did not meet the diagnostic criteria of VA enlargement, but there were individual variations. Through this study, we want to understand the VA development and explore its risk for suffering from ISSNHL. METHODS: 74 patients with ISSNHL were retrospectively reviewed in our department from June 2018 to September 2021...

A 46-year-old man who had been diagnosed with eosinophilic otitis media (EOM) and eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis was referred to our department. He suffered from bilateral earache, clogged ear sensation, and otorrhea associated with EOM. He had been treated with a myringotomy and a ventilation tube (VT) insertion. However, his symptoms did not improve, and the VT repeatedly fell out. We performed canal wall down mastoidectomy via a retro-auricular incision to remove the presumed cholesterol granuloma (CG) and a long-term VT insertion...

OBJECTIVE: Some studies have directly compared the National Acoustic Laboratories' prescription for non-linear hearing aids (HAs) version 2 (NAL-NL2) and Desired Sensation Level for non-linear HAs version 5 (DSLv5), although none were performed in Japan. As the Japanese language is a tonal language that has different linguistic characteristics than those of the studied languages, we compared the outcomes of the NAL-NL2 and DSLv5 in hearing-impaired Japanese participants. METHODS: A crossover-controlled trial was conducted on 18 first-time HA users with bilateral moderate sensorineural hearing loss...

OBJECTIVE: Head and neck cancer (HNC) treatment causes dysphagia, which may lead to aspiration pneumonia (AP). Thickened fluids are widely used to prevent aspiration in patients with dysphagia; however, there is little evidence that they can prevent AP. This study aimed to clarify the differences between restriction of oral intake of fluids (R), only thickened fluids (TF), and no restriction of fluids (NR) for AP in patients with dysphagia after HNC treatment. METHODS: We retrospectively studied 654 patients with dysphagia after HNC surgery between 2012 and 2021...

OBJECTIVE: Intratympanic steroid injection (ITSI) can be an effective treatment for sudden sensorineural hearing loss or Meniere's disease. Tympanic membrane (TM) perforation after ITSI is a major complication which needs additional treatment. The purpose of this study is to assess the factors associated with TM perforation after ITSI. METHODS: We obtained the clinical data of patients who underwent ITSI treatment at the Department of Otolaryngology JR Tokyo General Hospital from April 2013 to March 2021...

OBJECTIVE: Sialendoscopy is a procedure used to remove salivary stones intraorally using a sialendoscope. In this study, we identified treatment outcomes of sialendoscopic surgery and identified predictive factors for successful stone removal by sialendoscopy alone. METHODS: We assembled the medical records of 144 patients who underwent sialendoscopic surgery for submandibular gland sialolithiasis at the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Asahikawa Medical University, from October 2010 to November 2021, and collected patient backgrounds, medical condition, perioperative factors including operation method and complications, postoperative course, and stone constituents from a clinical laboratory testing company...

A 69-year-old man with impaired consciousness, right hemiplegia, and aphasia was admitted to our emergency room for thorough examination. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and 3-dimensional computed tomography (3D CT) scan of the head revealed a cerebral infarction due to dissection of the left internal carotid artery. Contrast-enhanced CT prior to internal carotid artery stenting showed that the left elongated styloid process ran in close proximity to the left internal carotid artery, with a minimum distance of 2 mm...

OBJECTIVE: Occurrence of hyperactive postoperative delirium (POD) with agitation after head and neck surgery with free tissue transfer reconstruction (HNS-FTTR) is associated with the risk of life-threatening complications. The relationships between occurrence of hyperactive POD after HNS-FTTR and inflammatory markers reflecting the surgical stress response, represented by postoperative interleukin-6 levels, are not fully understood. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted on 221 consecutive patients who underwent HNS-FTTR at our department between September 2016 and December 2021...

OBJECTIVE: Postoperative facial nerve paralysis is the most problematic complication after surgical treatment of parotid tumors. Localization of tumors is highly relevant for the surgical approach, but existing classification systems do not focus on the association between localization and surgical technique. Therefore, we created a new localization-based classification system for benign parotid tumors and investigated the characteristics of tumors in each localization and the frequency of postoperative facial nerve paralysis by retrospectively applying the classification to previous cases...

OBJECTIVE: Canal wall up (CWU) and canal wall down (CWD) mastoidectomies represent the most common cholesteatoma surgical techniques. In this meta-analysis, we compare the postoperative quality of life (QoL) in patients treated with either CWU or CWD mastoidectomy. METHODS: A literature search was conducted in the following three electronic databases: Medline/PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. Articles were assessed for eligibility in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses (PRISMA) statement and data were extracted independently by two authors...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the vestibular endolymphatic hydrops in patients with semicircular canal malformation. METHODS: We searched 7864 patients who underwent MR Imaging after contrast injection and found 21 patients with semicircular canal malformations. Another 9 non-malformed patients with unilateral hearing loss were randomly included. We asked patients about their medical history and measured the volume of total vestibular fluid space and endolymphatic space...

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to compare the clinical outcomes of fibular (FFF group) and scapular (SFF group) osseous free flaps for reconstructing head and neck defects for primary surgery and salvage options. METHODS: We analyzed 156 cases of osseous free flaps in 138 patients from a retrospective review of a single institutional database between January 1996 and January 2020 (FFF, 114 cases in 99 patients; SFF, 42 cases in 39 patients). Clinical profiles such as age, sex, primary tumor site, and defect type were investigated in the two groups...

OBJECTIVE: Benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) is the most common cause of dizziness in the general population. BPPV is known to be closely related to the serum vitamin D level. This study aimed to examine the relationship between serum vitamin D levels and BPPV recurrence. METHODS: A retrospective chart review was conducted on 50 patients diagnosed with posterior and lateral canal BPPV. The diagnosis of BPPV was based on the finding of vertigo and nystagmus induced by certain head positions (The Dix-Hallpike maneuver and head roll tests)...