Trepanations in the ancient Greek colony of Akanthos: Skull surgery in the light of Hippocratic medicine.

Objective: The study presents seven new cases of trepanations on four individuals from the ancient Greek colony of Akanthos (5th - 1st c. BC) and juxtaposes the paleopathological observations with the Hippocratic treatises.

Materials: A meta-analysis of 42 published trepanations on 27 individuals from Greece.

The skull of Chios: trepanation in Hippocratic medicine.

Cranial trepanation is the oldest neurosurgical operation and its roots date back to prehistory. For many centuries, religion and mysticism were strongly linked to the cause of diseases, and trepanation was associated with superstitions such as releasing evil spirits from inside the skull. The Hippocratic treatise "On injuries of the head" was therefore a revolutionary work, as it presented a systematic approach to the management of cranial trauma, one that was devoid of spiritual elements.

Changes in blood neurotransmitter and steroid levels during evoked vertigo.

Hypothesis And Background: Experimental evidence suggests that steroids as well as various neurotransmitters are critically involved in the functioning of the vestibular system in health and disease. Yet there are no pertinent human data. We hypothesized that changes in the serum levels of cortisol and plasma levels of excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmitters may occur during evoked vertigo.

Management of tracheal stenosis with a titanium ring and nasal septal cartilage.

Surgical management of subglottic laryngeal and upper tracheal stenosis remains a formidable challenge. The significant number of proposed techniques only highlights the difficulties associated with effectively managing this problem. Between 1996 and 1999, seven patients with stenosis of the upper trachea were treated.

Ossiculoplasty with the use of autografts and synthetic prosthetic materials: a comparison of results in 165 cases.

One hundred and sixty-five cases of different kind of ossiculoplasty in patients suffering from chronic middle ear disease were performed at the ENT department of Papanikolaou Hospital in Thessaloniki, Greece, during the years 1988-1990. There were 40 cases of incus transposition, 47 cases in which polyethylene TORPs and PORPs were used and 77 cases of hydroxylapatite prostheses (41 TORPs and 37 double notch PORPs). Hearing success was defined as a post-operative air-bone gap of < 20 dB.

Branchio-oto-renal dysplasia associated with tetralogy of Fallot.

Branchio-oto-renal dysplasia in its full expression consists of external ear malformations, cervical fistulas or cysts, preauricular pits, hearing loss of conductive sensorineural or mixed type, and renal anomalies. The syndrome is inherited in an autosomal dominant mode. We present a sporadic case of BOR dysplasia associated with tetralogy of Fallot in a 30-month-old girl.