Head and neck surgical reconstruction in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom-Afghanistan: A systematic review.

Historically, head and neck injuries constituted 16 to 20% of all nonfatal combat injuries. However, advances in body and vehicle armor in the context of the use of ambushes and improvised explosive devices by enemy combatants have resulted in fewer fatalities from head and neck wounds, and thus the incidence of nonfatal head and neck injuries has risen to as high as 52%. Despite this increase, data regarding specific injury distributions, surgical cases, and approaches to repair are lacking in the current literature.

Cochlear implantation leading to successful stapedectomy in the contralateral only-hearing ear.

Cochlear implants have recently begun to be offered to patients with single-sided deafness (SSD). Implantation in these patients has led to good results in suppressing ipsilateral tinnitus and in providing audiologic benefits in terms of speech perception in noise and localization. One previously unreported benefit of cochlear implantation in patients with SSD is the restoration of functional hearing in the previously deaf ear, which may allow for surgical opportunities in the contralateral hearing ear.

Adenoidectomy as an adjuvant to primary tympanostomy tube placement: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Importance: Adenoidectomy at initial tympanostomy tube placement (TT) may reduce the rate of repeated surgery for otitis media.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of primary adenoidectomy as an adjuvant to TT (Ad + TT) compared with TT alone.

Data Sources: PubMed and EMBASE electronic databases were searched with no publication year restrictions beyond those of the individual databases.