Long-Term Complications of Tracheoesophageal Voice Prosthesis.

: The aim of our multicenter retrospective study was to evaluate the long-term complications associated with primary and secondary tracheoesophageal puncture (TEP) in patients who underwent total laryngectomy (TL) for laryngeal cancer and were subsequently rehabilitated to phonatory function with tracheoesophageal speech (TES). : To evaluate the long-term outcomes and complications of TEP, the following data were collected: mean time of prosthesis replacement, mean time of onset of complications, type of complications, and type of failure. : Complications occurred in 18 out of 46 patients (39.

Multicentric Study on Oncological Outcomes and Prognostic Factors of Open Partial Horizontal Laryngectomies.

In recent years, the number of open preservation surgeries for the treatment of laryngeal Cancer has increased. This surgery aims to maintain laryngeal function and ensure oncological radicality, thereby avoiding a total laryngectomy (TL) that could significantly impact the patient's quality of life. The purpose of this study was to assess the oncologic results of OPHL I and II and to identify prognostic factors that could impact patient survival and local failure rates.

CD44, PDL1, and ATG7 Expression in Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinomas with Tissue Microarray (TMA) Technique: Evaluation of the Potential Prognostic and Predictive Roles.

We focus on the new prognostic and predictive factors CD44, PDL1, and ATG7 in our study of surgical samples of patients with laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma (LSCC) using tissue microarray (TMA). Thirty-nine previously untreated patients affected by laryngeal carcinoma who then underwent surgical treatment were considered in this retrospective study. All surgical specimens were sampled, embedded in paraffin blocks, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin.

Olfactory function in laryngectomised patients: tracheo-oesophageal oesophageal speech.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate olfactory function in patients rehabilitated with oesophageal (ES) voice or tracheo-oesophageal (TES) prosthesis to further verify whether there were differences in smell alterations depending on voice rehabilitation modality.

Methods: A total of 40 patients who had undergone total laryngectomy participated in the study. Speech rehabilitation was achieved through TES in 20 patients (Group A) or ES in 20 patients (Group B).

The Role of Probiotics in Chronic Rhinosinusitis Treatment: An Update of the Current Literature.

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a significant health problem. It affects 5-12% of the general population. The causes that underlie the onset of CRS are not yet well known.

Neurocognitive Performance Improvement after Obstructive Sleep Apnea Treatment: State of the Art.

Background: Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) syndrome is a respiratory sleep disorder characterized by partial or complete episodes of upper airway collapse with reduction or complete cessation of airflow. Although the connection remains debated, several mechanisms such as intermittent hypoxemia, sleep deprivation, hypercapnia disruption of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis have been associated with poor neurocognitive performance. Different treatments have been proposed to treat OSAS patients as continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), mandibular advancement devices (MAD), surgery; however, the effect on neurocognitive functions is still debated.

Role of P16 Expression in the Prognosis of Patients With Laryngeal Cancer: A Single Retrospective Analysis.

Background: A possible oncogenic role of human papillomavirus (HPV) in head and neck cancers (mainly oropharynx tumors) has been suggested. This significant association has been considered true for oropharynx tumors; however, the association between HPV infection and laryngeal carcinomas is yet to be established. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between p16 expression and long-term overall, disease-free, and disease-specific survival (OS, DF, and DSS, respectively) in patients surgically treated for laryngeal carcinoma.

Role of Clinical-Demographic Data in Survival Rates of Advanced Laryngeal Cancer.

: Laryngeal cancer is one of the most common cancers in the upper aerodigestive tract, and tobacco and alcohol habits are the most relevant risk factors. The role of these risk factors in the incidence of laryngeal carcinomas is well known, yet only a few studies have been conducted on their role as risk factors of prognosis. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of clinical-demographic data on overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and disease-specific survival (DSS) in patients with advanced-stage laryngeal cancer (Stage III-IV) who underwent total laryngectomy.

Early Glottic Cancer Treated by Transoral Laser Surgery Using Toluidine Blue for the Definition of the Surgical Margins: A Pilot Study.

: Transoral laser microsurgery (TLM) is widely accepted for its advantages, which consist of a brief hospital stay, rapid functional recovery, low management costs and the fact that it can be easily repeated in cases of recurrence. However, a high incidence of positive or narrow surgical margins has been reported in the literature, even if controversy still exists on the prognostic significance of positive resection margins. The aim of the study was to evaluate the utility of toluidine blue staining in defining the resection margins of early glottic cancer (T1a-T2) treated with TLM.

Verbal performance of total laryngectomized patients rehabilitated with esophageal speech and tracheoesophageal speech: impacts on patient quality of life.

Introduction: Total laryngectomy has important psychophysical and social consequences for patients' quality of life because of the functional changes resulting from the removal of the larynx. Voice deprivation is perhaps the most relevant limiting factor in social relationships, increasing feelings of solitude and tending to drive individuals into social isolation. Multiple voice rehabilitation methods after total laryngectomy are available.

Impact of the anterior commissure involvement on the survival of early glottic cancer treated with cricohyoidoepiglottopexy: a retrospective study.

Background: Laryngeal early glottic tumors can benefit from different treatment modalities, including transoral laser microsurgery, open partial horizontal laryngectomy (OPHL), and radiotherapy. However, the treatment of early glottic tumors with the involvement of the anterior commissure remains controversial. The studies about the role of anterior commissure involvement in oncologic outcomes in patients with early glottic cancer treated with supracricoid laryngectomy (SCL) are very few.

Differentiation by nerve growth factor (NGF) involves mechanisms of crosstalk between energy homeostasis and mitochondrial remodeling.

Neuronal differentiation involves extensive modification of biochemical and morphological properties to meet novel functional requirements. Reorganization of the mitochondrial network to match the higher energy demand plays a pivotal role in this process. Mechanisms of neuronal differentiation in response to nerve growth factor (NGF) have been largely characterized in terms of signaling, however, little is known about its impact on mitochondrial remodeling and metabolic function.

The TGF-β pathway is activated by 5-fluorouracil treatment in drug resistant colorectal carcinoma cells.

TGF-β pathway is generally associated with the processes of metastasis, angiogenesis and EMT in cancer. Very little is known, however, about the role of TGF-β in cancer drug resistance. In this work, we show a specific activation of the TGF-β pathway in consequence of chemotherapeutic treatment in in vivo and in vitro models of colorectal carcinoma.

Astrocytes and Microglia-Mediated Immune Response in Maladaptive Plasticity is Differently Modulated by NGF in the Ventral Horn of the Spinal Cord Following Peripheral Nerve Injury.

Reactive astrocytes and activated microglia are the key players in several pathophysiologic modifications of the central nervous system. We used the spared nerve injury (SNI) of the sciatic nerve to induce glial maladaptive response in the ventral horn of lumbar spinal cord and examine its role in the remodeling of the tripartite synapse plasticity. Imaging the ventral horn revealed that SNI was associated with both an early microglial and astrocytic activation, assessed, respectively, by analysis of Iba1 and GFAP expression.

Ectopic lingual thyroid with vascular anomalies.

Background: Lingual thyroid represents 90% of ectopic thyroid tissue localizations. The first case was described by Hickman in 1869. An ectopic thyroid is often asymptomatic, but pathological or physiological conditions inducing hyperproduction of thyroid-stimulating hormone can lead an ectopic thyroid to become symptomatic.

Neuropathic pain and reactive gliosis are reversed by dialdehydic compound in neuropathic pain rat models.

The role of the purinergic system in the modulation of pain mechanisms suggests that it might be promising target for treating neuropathic pain. In this study we evaluated the effects of two different dialdehydic compounds: a modified stable adenosine (2-[1-(6-amminopurin-9-il)-2-osso-etossi]prop-2-enale, named MED1101), and oxidized ATP (Ox-ATP), in two different neuropathic pain rat models: the sciatic spared nerve injury (SNI) and paclitaxel evoked painful peripheral neuropathy (pPPN). Neuropathic animals were divided in groups as follows: (a) treated with intraperitoneal (i.

Quality of voice evaluation in patients treated by supracricoid laryngectomy and modified supracricoid laryngectomy.

Objective: To compare quality of voice in patients treated by supracricoid laryngectomy and patients treated by modified supracricoid laryngectomy using the sternohyoid muscle for neoglottis reconstruction.

Study Design: Case series. Setting.

BB14, a Nerve Growth Factor (NGF)-like peptide shown to be effective in reducing reactive astrogliosis and restoring synaptic homeostasis in a rat model of peripheral nerve injury.

Peptidomimetics hold a great promise as therapeutic agents for neurodegenerative disorders. We previously described a Nerve Growth Factor (NGF)-like peptide, now named BB14, which was found to act as a strong TrkA agonist and to be effective in the sciatic nerve injury model of neuropathic pain. In this report we present the effects of BB14 in reducing reactive astrocytosis and reverting neuroplastic changes of the glutamate/GABAergic circuitry in the lumbar spinal cord following spared nerve injury (SNI) of the sciatic nerve.

Cross-talk between cell cycle induction and mitochondrial dysfunction during oxidative stress and nerve growth factor withdrawal in differentiated PC12 cells.

Neuronal death has been reported to involve mitochondrial dysfunction and cell cycle reentry. In this report, we used Nerve Growth Factor (NGF)-differentiated PC12 cells to investigate mechanisms linking mitochondrial dysfunction and cell cycle activation during neuronal death induced by NGF withdrawal and/or oxidative stress. We found that loss of survival following H(2) O(2) -induced oxidative stress or NGF deprivation was preceded by a decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm), increase in reactive oxygen species (ROS), and up-regulation of cyclin D1 and phosphorylation (Ser-780) of protein retinoblastoma (P-pRb), without an increase of proliferation rates.

Methylphenidate administration determines enduring changes in neuroglial network in rats.

Repeated exposure to psychostimulant drugs induces complex molecular and structural modifications in discrete brain regions of the meso-cortico-limbic system. This structural remodeling is thought to underlie neurobehavioral adaptive responses. Administration to adolescent rats of methylphenidate (MPH), commonly used in attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), triggers alterations of reward-based behavior paralleled by persistent and plastic synaptic changes of neuronal and glial markers within key areas of the reward circuits.

Reactive astrocytosis-induced perturbation of synaptic homeostasis is restored by nerve growth factor.

Reactive gliosis has been implicated in both inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases. However, mechanisms by which astrocytic activation affects synaptic efficacy have been poorly elucidated. We have used the spared nerve injury (SNI) of the sciatic nerve to induce reactive astrocytosis in the lumbar spinal cord and investigate its potential role in disrupting the neuro-glial circuitry.

Discriminative behavioral assessment unveils remarkable reactive astrocytosis and early molecular correlates in basal ganglia of 3-nitropropionic acid subchronic treated rats.

Reactive astrocytosis seems to be strongly implicated in the development and maintenance of inflammatory and neurodegenerative disorders. We design a new toxic model treatment with 3-nitropropionic acid (3-NP), a mitochondrial complex II irreversible inhibitor, to induce in rats Huntington's disease (HD) like syndrome, characterized by hindlimb dystonia, involuntary choreiform movements and reduced global activity. In an attempt to find out whether molecular and morphological changes in the neuro-glial network could be involved in the pathogenesis of this disease, we developed a protocol of subchronic intra-peritoneal 3-NP intoxication.