Quantitative analysis of uvular muscles in cases of simple snoring and obstructive sleep apnea: an image analysis study.

Studies on the histopathological changes of the palatine muscles in cases of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and simple snoring are controversial, while some authors confirm the presence of muscle hypertrophy and increase in total muscle bulk (obstructive theory), others deny this confirming the presence of muscle atrophy and decrease in the muscle bulk (neurogenic theory), but all these studies depended on subjective observer dependent methods to calculate the muscle bulk. We are carrying a unique study to calculate the muscle bulk in uvular specimens in ten cases of OSA comparing it to ten cases with simple snoring and controls using digital computer dependent software (image analysis). Cases of OSA are associated with definite increase in the total muscle bulk of the palatine muscles when compared to cases of simple snoring and controls.

A comparative study between ciliary count and the degree of opacity of paranasal sinus CT scans in chronic sinusitis pre and post FESS.

Objective: To investigate the relationship between the extent of sinus disease in chronic sinusitis as detected radiologically by computed tomography (CT) scan and the population of cilia (ciliary area) both before and after functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS). In a simple way this is a trial to statistically prove that the CT scan could be a valid indicator and a mirror of the histological status of the sinus mucosa.

Design: Twenty adult patients were enrolled in this study.

Ultrastructural ciliary changes of maxillary sinus mucosa following functional endoscopic sinus surgery: an image analysis quantitative study.

This was a study of the effect of functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) on the ciliary regeneration of maxillary sinus mucosa in patients with chronic maxillary sinusitis, using objective quantitative methods. Twenty specimens from the mucosa of both the superolateral wall and the ostium of the maxillary sinus were sampled during FESS and then six to 12 months later. They were light examined first by light microscopy and then by scanning electron microscopy in combination with image analysis software in order to study the cilia under higher magnification and to calculate proportion of the field that was ciliated.