Characteristic Pressure Waveforms Can Distinguish Airway Collapse Patterns in Sleep Apnea Patients: A Pilot Study.

Objective: To use pharyngeal pressure recordings to distinguish different upper airway collapse patterns in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) patients, and to assess whether these pressure recordings correlate with candidacy assessment for hypoglossal nerve stimulator (HGNS) implantation.

Study Design: Prospective case series.

Setting: Single tertiary-quaternary care academic center.

Upper airway stimulation therapy and sleep architecture in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Objectives/hypothesis: To quantify changes in sleep architecture before and after upper airway stimulation (UAS) therapy in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Study Design: Retrospective chart review.

Methods: This study was performed at a single-institution tertiary academic care center.

Outcomes of Hypoglossal Nerve Upper Airway Stimulation among Patients with Isolated Retropalatal Collapse.

Objective: To examine whether patients with isolated retropalatal collapse perform as well as others following implantation with an upper airway stimulation (UAS) device.

Study Design: Retrospective review.

Setting: Single-institution tertiary academic care medical center.

Novel approach using ultrasonic bone curettage and transoral robotic surgery for en bloc resection of cervical spine chordoma: case report.

Chordomas are rare, locally aggressive neoplasms that develop from remnants of the notochord. The typical approach to chordomas of the clivus and axial cervical spine often limits successful en bloc resection. In this case report, authors describe the first-documented transoral approach using both transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for exposure and the Sonopet bone scalpel under navigational guidance to achieve en bloc resection of a cervical chordoma.

Novel approach using transoral robotic surgery for resection of cervical spine chordoma.

Chordomas are rare, infiltrative neoplasms of notochordal origin that present along the spinal canal; en bloc surgical resection is paramount to successful treatment. Limited visualization and complex anatomy are major challenges to resection of upper cervical spine chordomas and often require invasive surgery. A 27-year-old male presented with an incidentally discovered chordoma of the midline second cervical vertebra of the spine.

Management of the Airway for Transoral Robotic Supraglottic Partial Laryngectomy.

Over the last several decades, transoral resection techniques for treatment of supraglottic lesions have become increasingly favored to reduce the need for either open transcervical resection or primary chemoradiation. Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) offers advantages in visualization, dissection control, and access to remove bulky tumors en bloc. However, the management of the airway for these cases tends to vary, without clear guidelines as to when a tracheostomy is necessary.

Upper airway stimulation therapy and prior airway surgery for obstructive sleep apnea.

Objective: To determine if patients with prior airway surgery for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) had increased benefit following implantation with hypoglossal nerve stimulator.

Study Design: Retrospective chart review at a single institution tertiary academic care center.

Methods: Following implantation with hypoglossal nerve stimulator device, the outcomes of patients who underwent prior airway surgery for OSA were compared with those who did not.

Speech perception performance as a function of age at implantation among postlingually deaf adult cochlear implant recipients.

Objective: We seek to determine the extent of age-related decline in speech perception performance among cochlear implant recipients as quantified by various metrics.

Study Design: Retrospective chart review.

Setting: Tertiary referral center.

Safety, efficacy, and hearing preservation using an integrated electro-acoustic stimulation hearing system.

Objective: To determine the safety, efficacy, and potential for hearing preservation of an electroacoustic hearing system in patients with severe high-frequency and moderate low-frequency hearing loss.

Patients: Five patients were included in this study with steeply down-sloping sensorineural hearing loss. All patients had a history of hearing aid use and similar hearing in the contralateral ear.