Immunoglobulin deficiency in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis: Systematic review of the literature and meta-analysis.

Background: Several studies have shown a high prevalence of immunoglobulin deficiencies in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS).

Objective: We sought to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate this prevalence more precisely and to identify patients who need substitution treatment.

Methods: All case series published after 1990 describing patients with CRS, which was defined as symptomatic rhinosinusitis for more than 12 weeks and documented immunoglobulin deficiencies (including deficiencies of IgG with subclasses, IgA, and IgM; specific antibody deficiencies; and potential common variable immunodeficiency), were retrieved.

T lymphocytes promote the antiviral and inflammatory responses of airway epithelial cells.

Hypothesis: T cells modulate the antiviral and inflammatory responses of airway epithelial cells to human rhinoviruses (HRV).

Methods: Differentiated primary human nasal epithelial cells (HNEC) grown on collagen-coated filters were exposed apically to HRV14 for 6 h, washed thoroughly and co-cultured with anti-CD3/CD28 activated T cells added in the basolateral compartment for 40 h.

Results: HRV14 did not induce IFNγ, NOS2, CXCL8 and IL-6 in HNEC, but enhanced expression of the T cell attractant CXCL10.

Olfactory function improves following hemodialysis.

Olfactory function has been shown to be affected in chronic kidney disease; however, studies are contradictory and little is known on the effects of dialysis. To resolve these issues we tested olfactory function in 24 healthy controls and in 28 patients with chronic kidney disease receiving hemodialysis (20 patients) or peritoneal dialysis (the other 8). As assays for olfactory function we measured smell identification, n-butanol and acetic acid thresholds, Kt/V urea, percentage reduced urea, and weights before and after dialysis.

Nasal provocation test: how to maximize its clinical use?

In order to diagnose allergic rhinitis (AR), skin prick tests and serum specific IgE level are the most common used methods. But there are some conditions which the results of both methods do not correlate with the clinical presentation of AR. Nasal provocation test is the method of detecting local IgE at the shock organ.

Gustatory dysfunction after mandibular zoster.

Varicella zoster, limited to the mandibular nerve, is rare. Classical symptoms are pain, hypesthesia and vesicular eruption restricted to the third trigeminal segment (V3). Little is known on taste affection after mandibular nerve zoster.

Superantigens.

Superantigens (SAgs) are derived from diverse sources, including bacteria, viruses, and human hepatic tissue. SAgs initially cause lymphocyte activation but then result in clonal deletion and anergy, leading to immune tolerance. They can also act as superallergens by stimulating a broad spectrum of mast cells and basophils in patients with allergic conditions.

Screening for staphylococcal superantigen genes shows no correlation with the presence or the severity of chronic rhinosinusitis and nasal polyposis.

Background: Staphylococcus aureus secretes numerous exotoxins which may exhibit superantigenic properties. Whereas the virulence of several of them is well documented, their exact biological effects are not fully understood. Exotoxins may influence the immune and inflammatory state of various organs, including the sinonasal mucosa: their possible involvement in chronic rhinosinusitis has been suggested and is one of the main trends in current research.

Chemosensory function in Wegener's granulomatosis: a preliminary report.

Despite the fact that Wegener's granulomatosis affects the nasal and paranasal cavities and the cranial nerves regularly, chemosensory impairments have not been reported. The objective of this study is to test the three chemosensory systems, olfaction, taste, and intranasal trigeminal function in Wegener disease patients. We tested olfactory, gustatory, and intranasal trigeminal function in nine patients (5 women, 4 men, mean age 57 years) with confirmed Wegener's granulomatosis.

Olfactory disorders: the patients' view.

Objective: To investigate the level of knowledge that patients had about their olfactory disorder at the time of presentation to a specialist Olfaction Clinic.

Design: Multi-centered, cohort study of consecutive patients presenting to specialist Olfaction Clinics surveyed using a standardized questionnaire.

Setting: Tertiary referral Olfactory Clinics in Geneva, Switzerland and Dresden, Germany.

Retronasal olfactory function in Parkinson's disease.

Objectives/hypothesis: Orthonasal olfaction is severely altered in PD patients. Retronasal olfactory function has been shown to be preserved under certain conditions even in the absence of orthonasal function. This study was undertaken to investigate retronasal versus orthonasal olfactory function in Parkinson's disease (PD).

Olfactory function and nasal nitric oxide.

Purpose Of Review: To highlight two often forgotten nasal functions, olfaction and nasal nitric oxide production, which have both received more attention over the last two decades with consequent findings that are now entering the routine clinical setting.

Recent Findings: Olfactory measurements have been optimized and normative data are available, giving clinicians the possibility of testing olfactory function quickly within a patient's workup. The results can lead to more thorough investigations if necessary.

Gustatory function after microlaryngoscopy.

Conclusion: Quantitative gustatory alterations are rare after microlaryngoscopy (MLS), whereas transient qualitative taste distortions occur more often. Patients undergoing MLS should know that mild but transient qualitative taste disorders may occur.

Objective: Suspension MLS requires neck extension and tongue compression.

Functional expression of connexin30 and connexin31 in the polarized human airway epithelium.

Gap junctions are documented in the human airway epithelium but the functional expression and molecular identity of their protein constituents (connexins, Cx) in the polarized epithelium is not known. To address this question, we documented the expression of a family of epithelial Cx (Cx26, Cx30, Cx30.3, Cx31, Cx31.

Postoperative/posttraumatic gustatory dysfunction.

Clinical taste testing in humans is far from being routinely performed in ear, nose and throat (ENT) clinics. Consequently, most reports on posttraumatic and postoperative taste disorders are case reports and mainly consist of qualitative (e.g.

Rhamnolipids are virulence factors that promote early infiltration of primary human airway epithelia by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The opportunistic bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa causes chronic respiratory infections in cystic fibrosis and immunocompromised individuals. Bacterial adherence to the basolateral domain of the host cells and internalization are thought to participate in P. aeruginosa pathogenicity.

Differences between orthonasal and retronasal olfactory functions in patients with loss of the sense of smell.

Objective: To investigate differences between orthonasal and retronasal olfaction in patients with loss of the sense of smell without taste complaints.

Design: Electrophysiological and psychophysical testing of orthonasal and retronasal olfactory functions.

Setting: Outpatient clinics.

Long-term cultures of polarized airway epithelial cells from patients with cystic fibrosis.

The poor ability of respiratory epithelial cells to proliferate and differentiate in vitro into a pseudostratified mucociliated epithelium limits the general use of primary airway epithelial cell (AEC) cultures generated from patients with rare diseases, such as cystic fibrosis (CF). Here, we describe a procedure to amplify AEC isolated from nasal polyps and generate long-term cultures of the respiratory epithelium. AEC were seeded onto microporous permeable supports that carried on their undersurface a preformed feeder layer of primary human airway fibroblasts.

Evidence of an intracellular reservoir in the nasal mucosa of patients with recurrent Staphylococcus aureus rhinosinusitis.

Severe infections due to Staphylococcus aureus require prolonged therapy for cure, and relapse may occur even years after the first episode. Persistence of S. aureus may be explained, in part, by nasal carriage of S.

[Clinical aspects of dysosmia and presentation of European Olfactory Test of "sniffin sticks": a review].

The medical community has neglected olfactory dysfunction for a long time. However, over the last two decades, remarkable progress has been made in terms of understanding the sense of smell and both the assessment and diagnosis of olfactory dysfunction. Currently, there are only a few validated olfactory tests.

Effects of amphotericin B on ion transport proteins in airway epithelial cells.

Topical intranasal application of the antifungal Amphotericin B (AmphoB) has been shown as an effective medical treatment of chronic rhinosinusitis. Because this antibiotic forms channels in lipid membranes, we considered the possibility that it affects the properties and/or cell surface expression of ion channels/pumps, and consequently transepithelial ion transport. Human nasal epithelial cells were exposed apically to AmphoB (50 microM) for 4 h, 5 days (4 h daily), and 4 weeks (4 h daily, 5 days weekly) and allowed to recover for 18-48 h.

Chronic panrhinosinusitis without nasal polyps: long-term outcome after functional endoscopic sinus surgery.

Objective: The goal of this study was to evaluate the long-term outcome after functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) for chronic panrhinosinusitis without nasal polyps by using symptom scoring and an endoscopic outcome evaluation.

Study Design: Seventy-seven patients with chronic panrhinosinusitis without nasal polyps (Kennedy computed tomography [CT] scan stages I to III) were followed up for at least 3 years after FESS. Preoperative evaluation included a CT scan and an immunoallergologic evaluation.

N-acetylcysteine inhibits Na+ absorption across human nasal epithelial cells.

N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a widely used mucolytic drug in patients with a variety of respiratory disorders. The mechanism of action is based on rupture of the disulfide bridges of the high molecular glycoproteins present in the mucus, resulting in smaller subunits of the glycoproteins and reduced viscosity of the mucus. Because Na(+) absorption regulates airway surface liquid volume and thus the efficiency of mucociliary clearance, we asked whether NAC affects the bioelectric properties of human nasal epithelial cells.

Skull base cerebrospinal fluid fistula: a novel detection method based on two-dimensional electrophoresis.

Background: The detection of the presence of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in nasal secretions contaminated with blood and mucus remains a challenging clinical problem.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted from November 1998 to February 2002, including 42 patients. Samples (250 microL) of nasal secretions were analyzed by two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE).

Objective and subjective evaluation of endoscopic nasal surgery outcomes.

Background: Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) symptoms include nasal obstruction, rhinorrhea, and facial pain associated with rhinosinusitis disability. When resistance to medical treatment is associated with endonasal anomalies, endoscopic nasal surgery (ENS) can be proposed. However, objective and subjective assessment criteria regarding the evaluation of ENS outcomes remain unclear.