World Journal of OtorhinolaryngologyHead and Neck Surgery最新文献

Neurological and psychiatric complications continue to be a public health concern in long coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This varies from olfactory dysfunctions such as parosmia to cognitive and emotional challenges. Historically, the surge of neurological disorders followed the viral pandemics, for example, the emergence of Encephalitis Lethargica after the outbreak of Spanish Influenza. During and after COVID-19 infection, the problems associated with the sense of smell and the reports of affected olfactory and limbic brain areas are leading to a growing concern about the similarity with the symptoms and the pattern of degeneration observed at the onset of Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. These reports reveal the essentiality of long-term studies of olfactory and cognitive functions in the post-COVID era and the experiments using animal models to dissect the neural basis of these complications. In this manuscript, we summarize the research reporting the potential correlation between neurological disorders and viral pandemic outbreaks with a historical perspective. Further, we discuss the studies providing evidence of neurodegeneration due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection by focusing on viral Parkinsonism.

The diagnosis and staging of head and neck tumors requires proper clinical, endoscopic, and radiological evaluation. Currently, imaging techniques such as Magnetic Resonance Imagining (MRI) and Computed Tomography (CT) are used for head and neck tumors but are limited in showing involvement of different hypopharyngeal sub-compartments. Several maneuvers have been developed to improve visualization of the head and neck area; however, they demonstrated minimal benefit. In this case series, patients with tumors involving the hypopharynx are studied. A laryngeal mask airway was used to stent the hypopharynx to assess the extent of the disease by creating real space between mucosal surfaces. This case series aims to describe the impact of using laryngeal mask airway on the evaluation of cancers involving the hypopharynx.

Background: Thyroid carcinoma (TC) accounts for almost 0.5%-1% of total malignancies. Its incidence is increasing rapidly worldwide. Several studies have drawn up the epidemiological profile of TC and its clinical and pathological features. However, to date, no similar studies have been conducted in Tunisia.

Aims: To establish an epidemiological profile of TC in a Tunisian health care institute and to analyze its clinical and histopathological characteristics in our institute.

Materials and methods: We present a retrospective study reviewing the cases of TC diagnosed in our institution in a 4-year period.

Results: We collected a sample of 192 cases of TC. It consisted of 31 males and 161 females (83.8%) with a sex-ratio M/F of 0.19. The mean age was 46.4 years. Papillary thyroid carcinoma was the most frequent histological subtype. The multifocality rate was 33.8%. The mean size of TC was 2.2 ± 1.9 cm. 60.9% of TC were staged pT1 and 20.3% had nodal involvement. Papillary thyroid microcarcinomas were noted in 37.5% of cases.

Conclusion: Our results were consistent with those of the literature. A high proportion of pT1 and pN0 tumors were noted in our series, suggesting that TC's diagnosis and management was performed at an early stage of the disease in our institution. In addition, our study enabled us to notice the impact of the Coronavirus disease 19 crisis on the management of TC in our institution. Further studies are needed to establish the epidemiological profile of TC in Tunisia and to assess its clinical and pathological features.