Bedside evaluation of swallowing function to predict aspiration pneumonia in Duchenne muscular dystrophy.

Objective: Aspiration pneumonia is one of the leading causes of death in patients with muscular dystrophy; therefore, it is important to predict its occurrence in the clincal setting. We aimed to examine the usefulness of repeated saliva swallowing test (RSST), modified water swallowing test (MWST), and flexible endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) for evaluating the Hyodo score at the bedside, to predict the risk of aspiration pneumonia in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD).

Methods: In this retrospective cohort study involving 43 patients, we evaluated the swallowing function using the RSST, MWST, and FEES, and predicted the likelihood of aspiration pneumonia within 2 years after the assessment.

Outcome of the 'waiting until spontaneous extrusion' strategy for long-term tympanostomy tube placement in children with cleft palate.

Background: Otitis media with effusion (OME) in children with cleft palate (CP) is known to be refractory to treatment and most of these patients undergo surgery for ventilation tube (VT) placement.

Objectives: To identify the outcomes of children with CP using long-term VT with a 'waiting until spontaneous extrusion' strategy.

Material And Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of all children with CP who visited our department from December 2016 to November 2017 and who received long-term VT placement in our department.

Long-term outcomes after surgery to prevent aspiration for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects motor neurons selectively. In particular, weakness in respiratory and swallowing muscles occasionally causes aspiration pneumonia and choking, which can be lethal. Surgery to prevent aspiration, which separates the trachea and esophagus, can reduce the associated risks.

Characteristics of the Voice Handicap Index for Patients With Unilateral Vocal Fold Paralysis Who Underwent Arytenoid Adduction.

Purpose: This study was performed to evaluate the characteristics of the Voice Handicap Index (VHI), a self-assessment measure, for patients with unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP) who underwent arytenoid adduction (AA), in comparison with postoperative vocal function examinations.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted for patients who underwent AA at Tohoku University Hospital during the period between 2014 and 2017. VHI was compared before and after surgery; moreover, correlations were assessed between the VHI and other voice measurements, including perceptual assessment of voice, as well as aerodynamic and acoustic measures.

Poor oral intake causes enteral nutrition dependency after concomitant chemoradiotherapy for pharyngeal cancers.

Purpose: To identify precipitating factors responsible for enteral nutrition (EN) dependency after concomitant chemoradiotherapy (CCRT) of head and neck cancers and to examine their statistical correlations.

Methods: Factors related to feeding condition, nutritional status, disease, and treatment of 26 oropharyngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer patients who received definitive CCRT were retrospectively investigated by examining their medical records. The days of no oral intake (NOI) during hospitalization and the months using enteral nutrition after CCRT were counted as representing the feeding condition, and the changes in body weight (BW) were examined as reflecting nutritional status.

Nasolacrimal duct opening to the inferior nasal meatus in human fetuses.

The purpose of this study is to describe the Hasner's membrane which is the main factor of congenital nasolacrimal duct obstruction. Hasner's membrane at the nasal end of the fetal nasolacrimal duct (NLD) is considered to rupture at and after birth. However, topographical anatomy around the membrane as well as a mechanism of rupture seems to be still obscure.

Submucosal Elastic Laminae of the Middle and Lower Pharynx: A Histological Study Using Elderly Cadaveric Specimens.

Although the pharyngeal wall is well known to have high elasticity, the distribution of submucosal elastic fibers has not been described. Observations of histological sections of the mid and lower pharyngeal walls from 15 elderly donated cadavers were made. We found two distinct submucosal tissue layers with a high content of elastic fibers (tentatively termed the "submucosal elastic laminae").

Cricoarytenoid Articulation in Elderly Japanese With Special Reference to Morphology of the Synovial Tissue.

Objective: To clarify composite fibers and cells in the synovial tissues of the cricoarytenoid joint (CA joint).

Methods: Routine histology and immunohistrochemistry using sagittal or nearly sagittal sections obtained from 18 elderly cadaveric specimens.

Results: The CA joint capsule was thin and contained few elastic fibers.