Depth of invasion as an independent prognostic factor in early-stage oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma.

Purpose: To determine the significance of depth of invasion as a predictor of recurrence and mortality in tongue and non-tongue early-stage oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma patients treated with surgery and no postoperative radiotherapy.

Materials And Methods: 344 patients with oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma from 2005 to 2022 at a tertiary academic medical center were reviewed. Patients were included if they had newly diagnosed, previously untreated T1-T2N0 disease treated with surgery alone that was observed within a follow-up of 5 years.

The use of thyroid isthmusectomy for management of well differentiated thyroid carcinoma - A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: With the growing global incidence of thyroid carcinomas, there is an increasing need for distinct guidelines for isthmus-confined carcinomas. Here, we performed the first systematic review on the topic to date, aiming to provide understanding to isthmusectomy as surgical management for well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma of the isthmus.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review following the PRISMA guidelines, analyzing English-language studies from the past decade that report on thyroid isthmusectomy.

Paramaxillary CT-guided fine needle aspiration of head and neck lesions: technique, diagnostic yield, and safety profile.

Computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous biopsy of deep-seated head and neck lesions can be a less invasive and equally effective alternative to surgical techniques. There are multiple approaches for needle biopsy that target varying spaces within the head and neck while successfully avoiding critical anatomy. In the paramaxillary approach, the needle is advanced through the infrazygomatic buccal space, in between the maxilla and mandible.

Temporal Dynamics of Nasopharyngeal and Tracheal Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Cycle Thresholds in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Patients With Tracheostomy.

In this study of 45 patients with COVID-19 undergoing tracheostomy, nasopharyngeal and tracheal cycle threshold (Ct) values were analyzed. Ct values rose to 37.9 by the time of tracheostomy and remained >35 postoperatively, demonstrating that persistent test positivity may not be associated with persistent transmissible virus in this population.

Times to Diagnosis, Staging, and Treatment of Head and Neck Cancer Before and During COVID-19.

Objective: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has reduced the demand for, and supply of, head and neck cancer services. This study compares the times to diagnosis, staging, and treatment of head and neck cancers before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Essential inpatient otolaryngology: what COVID-19 has revealed.

Purpose: To identify areas of critical otolaryngology contributions to inpatient care resistant to disruption by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Medical records of 614 otolaryngology consults seen between January and June of 2019 and 602 seen between January and June of 2020 were reviewed. Extracted data included patient demographics, SARS-CoV-2 status, medical comorbidities, consult location, consult category, reason for consult, procedures performed, and overall outcome.

Percutaneous and Open Tracheostomy in Patients With COVID-19: The Weill Cornell Experience in New York City.

Objective: Report long-term tracheostomy outcomes in patients with COVID-19.

Study Design: Review of prospectively collected data.

Methods: Prospectively collected data were extracted for adults with COVID-19 undergoing percutaneous or open tracheostomy between April 4, 2020 and June 2, 2020 at a major medical center in New York City.

[68Ga]-DOTATATE PET/CT and PET/MRI in the diagnosis and management of esthesioneuroblastoma: illustrative cases.

Background: Esthesioneuroblastoma (ENB), also known as olfactory neuroblastoma, is a rare sinonasal neuroectodermal malignancy with a slow onset of symptoms, favorable 5-year survival, and a propensity for delayed locoregional recurrence. Current treatment options include resection, adjuvant radiotherapy, and/or chemotherapy; however, because of its rarity and location, determining the optimal treatment for ENB has been challenging.

Observations: ENBs strongly express somatostatin receptors (SSTRs), particularly SSTR2, providing a molecular target for imaging and therapy.

Percutaneous and Open Tracheostomy in Patients with COVID-19: Comparison and Outcomes of an Institutional Series in New York City.

Objective: The aim of this study was to report the safety, efficacy, and early results of tracheostomy in patients with COVID-19 and determine whether differences exist between percutaneous and open methods.

Summary Background Data: Prolonged respiratory failure is common in symptomatic patients with COVID-19, the disease process caused by infection with the novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Tracheostomy, although posing potential risk to the operative team and other healthcare workers, may be beneficial for safe weaning of sedation and ventilator support.

PD1 Blockade Enhances ICAM1-Directed CAR T Therapeutic Efficacy in Advanced Thyroid Cancer.

Purpose: Advanced thyroid cancers, including poorly differentiated and anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC), are lethal malignancies with limited treatment options. The majority of patients with ATC have responded poorly to programmed death 1 (PD1) blockade in early clinical trials. There is a need to explore new treatment options.

Thyroidectomy Complications in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus.

Objective: To (1) analyze postoperative thyroidectomy outcomes in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM), who are prone to deleterious effects of glucose dysmetabolism, and (2) apply findings to optimize perioperative management of diabetics requiring thyroid surgery.

Study Design: Retrospective database analysis.

Setting: University hospital.

Hypopharyngeal cancer treatment: Does initial surgery confer survival benefit?

Background: Organ preservation protocols have increasingly been applied for the treatment of head and neck cancers, including hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (HSCC). We sought to evaluate whether patients treated with primary surgery followed by adjuvant therapy had survival benefit over patients treated with initial nonsurgical modalities.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed patients with new diagnosis of HSCC at the University of Pittsburgh (1994-2014) treated with either primary total laryngectomy with pharyngectomy or organ preservation.

CAR T Therapy Targeting ICAM-1 Eliminates Advanced Human Thyroid Tumors.

Poorly differentiated thyroid cancer and anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) are rare yet lethal malignancies with limited treatment options. Many malignant tumors, including papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) and ATC, are associated with increased expression of ICAM-1, providing a rationale for utilizing ICAM-1-targeting agents for the treatment of aggressive cancer. We developed a third-generation chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) targeting ICAM-1 to leverage adoptive T-cell therapy as a new treatment modality.

Preoperative F-FDG-PET/CT vs Contrast-Enhanced CT to Identify Regional Nodal Metastasis among Patients with Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Objective Our objective was to compare the accuracy of preoperative positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) and contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) in detecting cervical nodal metastases in patients treated with neck dissection and to scrutinize the ability of each modality to determine nodal stage. Study Design Case series with chart review. Setting Montefiore Medical Center, Bronx, New York.

Tumor Debulking in the Management of Laryngeal Cancer Airway Obstruction.

Patients presenting with advanced aerodigestive malignancy and respiratory compromise often undergo tracheotomy as initial airway management. Tumor debulking is a potential alternative. We present a case series with chart review to communicate our institutional experience with this technique.

Minimal Margin Extracapsular Dissection: A Viable Alternative Technique for Benign Parotid Lesions?

Objective: Extracapsular dissection (ECD) has become an accepted, less invasive alternative for the removal of select benign parotid lesions that may reduce complications. Minimal margin extracapsular dissection (MECD) with dissection on or closer to the tumor capsule may be a reasonable alternative to ECD. The objective of this study is to review the complications and safety of the MECD technique at a single institution.

How radiologic/clinicopathologic features relate to compressive symptoms in benign thyroid disease.

Objectives/hypothesis: To identify compressive symptomatology in a patient cohort with benign thyroid disease who underwent thyroidectomy. To determine radiographic/clinicopathologic features related to and predictive of a compressive outcome.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Preoperative Assessment of Risk Factors.

Hemostasis is essential during endoscopic sinus and skull base surgery. Patients must be adequately assessed for bleeding risk to appropriately consent to surgery. The patient and the surgeon must be aware of the individual bleeding risk for a given procedure.

Refining the utility and role of Frozen section in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma resection.

Objectives/hypothesis: Previous studies report high-accuracy rates for intraoperative frozen sections, but reliability of frozen sections in predicting the ultimate final margin status is unknown. We compared frozen and permanent reads to identify risk factors for overall discrepancies between intraoperative and final margin status.

Study Design: Retrospective chart review.

Randomized Controlled Trial Assessing the Feasibility of Shortened Fasts in Intubated ICU Patients Undergoing Tracheotomy.

Objective: American Society of Anesthesiology guidelines recommend preoperative fasts of 6 hours after light snacks and 8 hours after large meals. These guidelines were designed for healthy patients undergoing elective procedures but are often applied to intubated intensive care unit (ICU) patients. ICU patients undergoing routine procedures may be subjected to unnecessary prolonged fasts.

Medullary thyroid cancer with undetectable serum calcitonin.

Context: Calcitonin is a sensitive biomarker that is used for diagnosis and follow-up in medullary thyroid cancer (MTC). In patients with tumors > 1 cm, it is uncommon for preoperative serum calcitonin to be in the normal laboratory reference range in patients with MTC, and even more unusual for serum calcitonin to be undetectable.

The Case: A 39-year-old woman was found to have a left thyroid nodule on magnetic resonance imaging done for neck pain.

Risk factors for perioperative airway difficulty and evaluation of intubation approaches among patients with benign goiter.

Objective: The objective was to determine patient and gland characteristics associated with difficult intubation in patients undergoing thyroidectomy for goiter and to assess different methods of intubation in these patients.

Methods: This study was an IRB-approved, retrospective chart review of 112 consecutive patients undergoing hemithyroidectomy or total thyroidectomy for thyroid goiter from 2009-2012 at an academic tertiary care facility in Bronx, New York. Patient demographics, thyroid gland characteristics (gland weight and nodule size), presence of preoperative symptoms (dyspnea, dysphagia, and hoarseness), and radiographical findings (tracheal compression, tracheal deviation, and substernal extension of the thyroid gland) were recorded.