Primary parapharyngeal tumours: a review of 21 cases.

Background: The diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed in a series of patients with primary parapharyngeal space (PPS) tumours treated at the ENT Departments of San Giovanni Bosco Hospital, Turin, and of the Pugliese-Ciaccio Hospital, Catanzaro, Italy, in the period 2001-2010 are evaluated.

Materials And Methods: The retrospective review included 20 patients, 11 male and 9 female, average age of 41 years operated on for 21 primary PPS tumours. The most common tumours found were neurogenic neoplasms, while those of salivary origin were the next most common.

Management of head and neck paragangliomas: a series of 9 cases and review of the literature.

We conducted a retrospective study of the long-term functional results of surgery for head and neck paragangliomas. Our study population was made up of 9 patients--4 men and 5 women, aged 22 to 59 years (mean: 46.6; median: 51)--who had undergone surgical excision of a head and neck paraganglioma from January 2002 through December 2006 in the ENT Department at Pugliese-Ciaccio Hospital in Catanzaro, Italy.

Surgery of thyroid cancer: twelve years' personal experience.

Diagnosis and treatment of thyroid carcinoma require a multidisciplinary approach. The close and long-standing collaboration between the Otorhinolaryngology, Pathological Anatomy and Nuclear Medicine Departments of Legnano Hospital has led to a precise diagnostic and therapeutic protocol in thyroid patients. In the 1990-2002 period, 131 patients underwent total thyroidectomy after diagnosis of thyroid cancer at the Otorhinolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery Department.

Surgery of Glomus Jugulare Tumors.

The treatment of choice for glomus jugulare tumors is still controversial. High rates of morbidity, incomplete resection, and the aggressive behavior of these tumors are the main arguments for advocates of primary radiotherapy. However, constant refinements in skull base techniques have made complete resection of these lesions a realistic goal.

Posterior fossa vestibular neurotomy as primary surgical treatment of Menière's disease: a re-evaluation.

Fifty-eight patients underwent vestibular neurotomy via the posterior fossa approach between September 1992 and December 1998 at the ENT department of Legnano. All patients presented a history of disabling unilateral Menière's disease and underwent complete neuro-otologic evaluation following the 1985 American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) guidelines. All patients underwent MRI imaging, ABR and electronystagmographic testing before surgery.

[Trans-labyrinthine approach for the resection large and giant acoustic nerve neuromas].

The standard translabyrinthine approach for acoustic neuromas removal was introduced by W. House in 1964. After several years of experience the original translabyrinthine approach has been progressively modified into the current "enlarged" approach by extending the area of bone removal.

[Petrous bone cholesteatoma: surgical strategy].

Petrous bone cholesteatoma is a rare pathology which grows slowly and is often asymptomatic. This work presents a series of 25 cases of Petrous bone cholesteatoma and discusses the diagnostic impact, the surgical approach, the results and the complications. Currently our surgical orientation favors translabyrinthine and transcochlear approaches which, better than other ones, allow both radical excision of the lesion and preservation of the main neuro-vascular structures.

Evaluation of the sensitivity of microfilter paper assays in an anthropological study: results of samples from Cameroon and Tanzania.

Microfilter absorbed whole blood samples from 223 Tanzanian babies and 189 adults from Cameroon have been examined. Blood specimens are difficult to obtain from African suburban and rural areas, and lack of storage and transportation facilities can prevent the collection of samples. We evaluated some microassays employing whole blood collected on filter paper.

[Analgesic activity of Benexol-B12 in the painful vertebral syndrome].

In order to verify the analgesic activity of an association of vitamin B1 - B6 - B12 (Benexol B12) in the painful vertebral syndrome, the Authors have performed a comparative trial between 20 patients treated with the association and 20 patients treated with a brain phospholipid extract (Cronassial). The results obtained in the two groups of patients are discussed.