The role of the maxillary sinus on the voice.

The objective of the study was to determine the effect of the maxillary sinus on the voice. The prospective study was conducted at an academic secondary referral center. A prospective chart review of 43 patients (17 males, 26 females) who conducted a voice recording and survey before and 3 months after middle meatal antrostomy whose lesion was confined to the maxillary sinus.

Extratympanic observation of middle ear structure using a refractive index matching material (glycerol) and an infrared camera.

High-resolution computed tomography has been used mainly in the diagnosis of middle ear disease, such as high-jugular bulb, congenital cholesteatoma, and ossicular disruption. However, certain diagnoses are confirmed through exploratory tympanotomy. There are few noninvasive methods available to observe the middle ear.

Inflammation and apoptosis in malignant transformation of sinonasal inverted papilloma: the role of the bridge molecules, cyclooxygenase-2, and nuclear factor κB.

Purpose: This study examined the early events in the neoplastic progression of the sinonasal inverted papilloma to squamous cell carcinoma from the viewpoint of chronic inflammation and apoptosis.

Materials And Methods: In total, 118 archival slides stained with hematoxylin and eosin from 45 patients were graded according to histopathology (grades I-IV). Their representative portions were transferred to a tissue microarray, sections of which were stained immunohistochemically for cyclooxygenase-2, p53, bax, bcl-2, and nuclear factor κB.

The effect of radiosurgery on cochlear implant function.

Cochlear implants are used worldwide for the treatment of severe to profound bilateral sensorineural hearing loss in both adults and children. A number of implantees are likely to be treated with radiosurgery later in life, but very little is known about the effects of radiosurgery on cochlear implants. We report a cochlear-implanted patient who underwent radiosurgery due to a recurrent meningioma.

The importance of vascular endothelial growth factor in the healing of acute tympanic membrane perforation.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the more important growth factor expression between basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the healing of acute tympanic membrane (TM) perforation.

Materials And Methods: Bilateral perforations of the TM were created in 12 rats. The TM perforations in the right ears were treated with dexamethasone, and left ears were designated as the control group.

Histologic changes in the auditory tube mucosa of rats after long-term exposure to cigarette smoke.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of cigarette smoke on the auditory tube and middle ear mucosa after long-term exposure (4 and 6 months).

Materials And Methods: Fifteen rats were divided into 3 groups. The experimental groups were exposed to cigarette in a smoking chamber for 4 and 6 months (n = 5 each).

Analysis of hepatitis B virus in the cerumen and otorrhea of chronic HBV-infected patients: is there a hepatitis B virus infectivity?

Hypothesis: The object of this study was to find out whether cerumen and otorrhea have any infectivity in the transmission of hepatitis B virus (HBV).

Background: The HBV infection is a worldwide health problem. It can be transmitted by infected blood or other body fluids through percutaneous or permucosal exposure.

A case of isolated ossifying fibroma of the mastoid cavity of the temporal bones.

Objectives: To describe an isolated ossifying fibroma of the mastoid cavity that did not invade the inner ear and middle ear cavity.

Study Design: Case report.

Setting: Department of Otolaryngology, College of Medicine, Pusan National University, a tertiary care center in Busan, South Korea.

Histologic changes in the eustachian tube mucosa of rats after short-term exposure to cigarette smoke.

Objective And Background: It is generally accepted that cigarette smoke is a major risk factor for middle ear disease. However, the literature is void of articles addressing the direct relationship between cigarette smoke exposure and middle ear disease. Furthermore, there are many conflicting opinions concerning the role of cigarette smoke in the pathogenesis of middle ear disease.

Detection of amino acids in human nasal mucosa using microdialysis technique: increased glutamate in allergic rhinitis.

Amino acids, the smaller basic biochemical units of neuropeptides, have not been evaluated in the nasal cavity. The purpose of this study was to measure the concentration of neurotransmitting amino acids of the central nervous system, glutamate, aspartate, serine, taurine (2-aminoethane sulfonic acid; a conditionally essential amino acids), and GABA (gamma-amino-butyric acid; an amino acid produced in the brain), in nasal mucosa of allergic rhinitis patients and normal controls using a microdialysis technique. A microdialysis probe appropriate for use on human nasal mucosa was developed using Cuprophan hollow fiber.

Histologic evaluation of intracordal autologous cartilage injection in the paralyzed canine vocal fold at two and three years.

Objective: Intracordal injection for vocal fold augmentation is easy and simple and does not require a cervical skin incision. We reported previously on the 1-year results of injected autologous auricular cartilage for volumetric augmentation in paralyzed canine vocal cord. This study evaluates the long-term histomorphologic results of injected autologous auricular cartilage for the augmentation of the paralyzed canine vocal fold at 2 and 3 years.

Clinical usefulness of 3-dimensional computed tomography laryngography in laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer.

This study was designed to evaluate the clinical usefulness of 3-dimensional computed tomography (CT) laryngography for the determination of subglottic extension in laryngeal cancer and for the involvement of the pyriform sinus apex in hypopharyngeal cancer. Twenty-one patients with laryngeal cancer and 19 patients with hypopharyngeal cancer underwent spiral CT during quiet breathing, /E/ phonation, Valsalva's maneuver, and modified Valsalva's maneuver. Three-dimensional volume rendering with CT data was performed on a workstation.

Effects of cisplatin, 5-fluorouracil, and radiation on cell cycle regulation and apoptosis in the hypopharyngeal carcinoma cell line.

In head and neck cancer including hypopharyngeal cancer, cisplatin and 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) usually have been used as neoadjuvant chemotherapeutic agents. We investigated the effects of cisplatin, 5-FU and radiation on p53 protein expression and cell responses (cell cycle arrest and/or apoptosis) in the hypopharyngeal carcinoma cell line (PNUH-12; mutant type p53). PNUH-12 cells were treated with cisplatin, 5-FU and radiation.

Magnetic resonance imaging and sudden deafness.

Sudden deafness is a disorder defined as acute sensorineural deafness of unknown etiology. To determine whether establishing the pathogenesis of this disease is possible, this study analyzed the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of early stages of sudden deafness in combination with the clinical results of treatments. The MRI findings of 18 patients with sudden deafness included three cases of slow blood flow of the vertebrobasilar system, one case of abnormal course of the vertebrobasilar system, and one case of labyrinthine enhancement.

Factors associated with postoperative delirium after major head and neck surgery.

Postoperative delirium (POD) is an acute change in cognitive status characterized by fluctuating consciousness and is associated with high incidences of morbidity, high complication rates, and long hospitalizations. This study was performed to determine the incidence of POD and the perioperative risk factors in order to predict which patients have an increased risk and thus to prevent POD after major head and neck surgery. The authors retrospectively evaluated 341 patients who underwent laryngectomy or the Commando (combined operation of mouth, mandible, and neck dissection) procedure at Pusan National University Hospital from January 1986 through July 2001.