Postoperative adjuvant chemoradiotherapy versus postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma with adverse pathology: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: Postoperative chemoradiotherapy has arisen as an adjuvant option for head and neck cancers, but its superiority to radiotherapy alone in patients with adverse pathologic factors is not yet well defined. We aimed to perform an updated meta-analysis comparing outcomes in head and neck cancer patients with adverse pathologic factors who underwent postoperative chemoradiotherapy and radiotherapy alone.

Methods: We systematically searched PubMed, Scopus and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials for Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs) in patients submitted to postoperative adjuvant therapy with radiotherapy alone or chemoradiotherapy.

Comparative analysis of the bronchoalveolar microbiome in Portuguese patients with different chronic lung disorders.

The lung is inhabited by a diverse microbiome that originates from the oropharynx by a mechanism of micro-aspiration. Its bacterial biomass is usually low; however, this condition shifts in lung cancer (LC), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and interstitial lung disease (ILD). These chronic lung disorders (CLD) may coexist in the same patient as comorbidities and share common risk factors, among which the microbiome is included.

Use of Single Chimeric Free Flaps or Double Free Flaps for Complex Head and Neck Reconstruction.

Background:  Free flaps have become the preferred reconstructive approach to restore form and function for patients presenting with complex head and neck defects. For composite, complex defects for which a regular free flap might not meet all reconstructive demands, adequate coverage can be achieved with either a single chimeric free flap or a double free flap.

Methods:  We performed a single-center retrospective chart review of patients who underwent either single chimeric free flap or double free flap reconstruction.

Fascicular Turnover Flap: An Approach for Facial Nerve Reconstruction.

Facial nerve injuries are a common complication associated with parotidectomy. These functionally debilitating injuries are conventionally treated with nonvascularized nerve grafting; however, this reconstructive modality produces moderate donor site morbidity and has limited efficacy for repairing large defects. In addition, nonvascularized nerve grafts are highly susceptible to radiotherapy and require a well-vascularized wound bed to produce adequate therapeutic results.

Profiling of lung microbiota discloses differences in adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma.

The lung is a complex ecosystem of host cells and microbes often disrupted in pathological conditions. Although bacteria have been hypothesized as agents of carcinogenesis, little is known about microbiota profile of the most prevalent cancer subtypes: adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). To characterize lung cancer (LC) microbiota a first a screening was performed through a pooled sequencing approach of 16S ribosomal RNA gene (V3-V6) using a total of 103 bronchoalveaolar lavage fluid samples.

Educational interventions to improve inhaler techniques and their impact on asthma and COPD control: a pilot effectiveness-implementation trial.

To assess the impact that educational interventions to improve inhaler techniques have on the clinical and functional control of asthma and COPD, we evaluated 44 participants before and after such an intervention. There was a significant decrease in the number of errors, and 20 patients (46%) significantly improved their technique regarding prior exhalation and breath hold. In the asthma group, there were significant improvements in the mean FEV1, FVC, and PEF (of 6.

Multicentric Genome-Wide Association Study for Primary Spontaneous Pneumothorax.

Despite elevated incidence and recurrence rates for Primary Spontaneous Pneumothorax (PSP), little is known about its etiology, and the genetics of idiopathic PSP remains unexplored. To identify genetic variants contributing to sporadic PSP risk, we conducted the first PSP genome-wide association study. Two replicate pools of 92 Portuguese PSP cases and of 129 age- and sex-matched controls were allelotyped in triplicate on the Affymetrix Human SNP Array 6.

Assessment of Inhalation Technique in Clinical and Functional Control of Asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.

Introduction: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma affect almost 300 million individuals. Inhaled therapy is often associated with technical errors reducing efficacy and compliance.

Objective: To evaluate the inhalation technique and its relation with clinical and functional control in asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

BRAF mutation in papillary thyroid cancer and its value in tailoring initial treatment: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Clinicians have long sought to characterize biological markers of neoplasia as objective indicators of tumor presence, pathogenicity, and prognosis. Armed with data that correlate biomarker activity with disease presence and progression, clinicians can develop treatment strategies that address risks of disease recurrence or persistence and progression. The B-type Raf kinase (BRAF V600E) mutation in exon 15 of the BRAF gene has been noted to be a putative prognostic marker of the most prevalent form of thyroid cancer, papillary thyroid cancer (PTC)--a tumor type with high proclivity for recurrence or persistence.

The incidence of central neck micrometastatic disease in patients with papillary thyroid cancer staged preoperatively and intraoperatively as N0.

Background: In papillary thyroid cancer, the incidence of regional lymph node metastasis in the central compartment has been reported to be between 21% and 60%. This study sought to establish the rate of micrometastatic disease in the central neck in patients staged as N0 by preoperative and intraoperative assessment.

Methods: We studied 72 consecutive patients with diagnoses of papillary thyroid cancer without preoperative or intraoperative evidence of central neck metastases.

Incidence of malignancy in thyroid nodules determined to be follicular lesions of undetermined significance on fine-needle aspiration.

Background: Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) for thyroid nodules is the most important method for determining a diagnosis. The system for reporting results is based on a cytopathologic classification that stratifies the risk of malignancy.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 197 patients who underwent FNA for diagnostic evaluation of a thyroid nodule and had their results reported as a follicular lesion of undetermined significance (FLUS) using the Bethesda classification system.

Anatomic landmarks for localization of the spinal accessory nerve.

This anatomical study examines the anatomic topography and landmarks for localization of the spinal accessory nerve (SAN) during surgical dissections in 40 fresh human cadavers (2 females and 38 males; ages from 22 to 89 years with a mean of 60 years). In the submandibular region, the SAN was found anteriorly to the transverse process of the atlas in 77.5% of the dissections.