Turkish Archives of Otorhinolaryngology最新文献

Objective: This study aims to present a series of patients with disseminated rhinosporidosis with diagnostic and therapeutic features.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted in a tertiary health care centre in South India from 2007 to 2020 with disseminated rhinosporidiosis. Twelve patients with multiple sites of involvement like the nose, nasopharynx, oropharynx, larynx, lacrimal sac and skin were included in the study. All patients underwent surgical excision, followed by peroral dapsone for one year.

Results: The age group was around 30-55 years, with male predominance (11:1). Pond bathing history was present in 50% (n=6). The most common site of lesion was the nose (100%), oropharynx (83.3%), skin (75%), larynx (50%) and less commonly, nasopharynx (41.6%) and lacrimal sac (25%). One patient underwent surgery four times (8.3%), followed by thrice and twice by five (41.6%) and six (50%) patients, respectively. On two years of follow-up, two patients (16.6%) had a recurrence in the nose and larynx whereas eight patients (66.6%) had no recurrence and two patients (16.6%) were lost to follow-up.

Conclusion: This original article highlights the rare occurrence of disseminated rhinosporidiosis, the possibility of which should be kept in mind, mainly when two or more sites are involved. The most significant number of disseminated rhinosporidiosis cases in the literature is reported here. Dissemination with the cutaneous and multisite disease is rarely reported and poses difficulty in management. Early diagnosis and intervention prevent the dissemination of spores into various parts of the body.

Objective: Muscle tension dysphonia (MTD) is a functional voice condition that causes irregular and imbalanced laryngeal and paralaryngeal muscle activation. Our study aimed to examine the acoustic characteristics of patients with MTD and reveal the differences between genders.

Methods: The study retrospectively reviewed the acoustic examination findings from the files of patients diagnosed with MTD during evaluations in the laryngology outpatient clinic at a tertiary reference hospital between 2015 and 2022. The parameters assessed in prolonged vowel phonation analysis were fundamental frequency (F0), jitter, shimmer, noise-to-harmonic-to-ratio, and soft phonation index; in the counting task analysis, they were intensity, frequency, and semitone. Gender differences in acoustic measurements obtained during prolonged vowel phonation and counting tasks were also examined.

Results: The study included 80 individuals diagnosed with MTD. Although all parameters in the acoustic analysis of/a/ phonation were increased, differences were statistically significant only in the F0 and jitter parameters between females and males (p≤0.05). In the analysis of the counting task, the mean and minimum F0 parameters were significantly higher in females than in males (p=0.000). The mean dB level was decreased, particularly in the counting task, but the results for the intensity parameter did not differ significantly between genders (p>0.05).

Conclusion: The values in the acoustic voice analysis parameters of patients with MTD were determined. These acoustic parameters are thought to guide the clinician in evaluating voice and determining voice therapy goals for MTD patients.

Objective: This study aims to present the surgical and oncological long-term outcomes of patients with locally recurrent nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) following endoscopic endonasal nasopharyngectomy (EEN).

Methods: The medical records of 11 patients who underwent EEN due to recurrent NPC were retrospectively reviewed.

Results: The mean age of the patient cohort, consisting of 10 males (90.9%) and one female (9.1%), was 44±13.01 years at the time of initial diagnosis. Seven patients (63.7%) had local recurrence, and four patients (36.3%) had loco-regional recurrence. The mean time to first recurrence from the initial diagnosis was 40.3 months, with a 5-year overall survival (OS) rate of 72.7% and a disease-free survival (DFS) rate of 27.3%. There were no significant differences between the concurrent chemoradiotherapy (CRT) and induction chemotherapy+concurrent CRT treatment groups in terms of DFS and OS as a first-line treatment (p=0.645).

Conclusion: EEN is a viable alternative approach for selected cases of locally recurrent NPC, considering the morbidities associated with re-irradiation.

Objective: Large language models (LLMs) are used in various fields for their ability to produce human-like text. They are particularly useful in medical education, aiding clinical management skills and exam preparation for residents. To evaluate and compare the performance of ChatGPT (GPT-4), Gemini, and Bing with each other and with otorhinolaryngology residents in answering in-service training exam questions and provide insights into the usefulness of these models in medical education and healthcare.

Methods: Eight otorhinolaryngology in-service training exams were used for comparison. 316 questions were prepared from the Resident Training Textbook of the Turkish Society of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery. These questions were presented to the three artificial intelligence models. The exam results were evaluated to determine the accuracy of both models and residents.

Results: GPT-4 achieved the highest accuracy among the LLMs at 54.75% (GPT-4 vs. Gemini p=0.002, GPT-4 vs. Bing p<0.001), followed by Gemini at 40.50% and Bing at 37.00% (Gemini vs. Bing p=0.327). However, senior residents outperformed all LLMs and other residents with an accuracy rate of 75.5% (p<0.001). The LLMs could only compete with junior residents. GPT- 4 and Gemini performed similarly to juniors, whose accuracy level was 46.90% (p=0.058 and p=0.120, respectively). However, juniors still outperformed Bing (p=0.019).

Conclusion: The LLMs currently have limitations in achieving the same medical accuracy as senior and mid-level residents. However, they outperform in specific subspecialties, indicating the potential usefulness in certain medical fields.

Objective: Early surgical debridement is vital for favorable outcomes in acute invasive fungal sinusitis (AIFS). Our study aimed to propose guidelines with tailored, conservative surgical procedures based on areas of involvement and evaluate their usefulness in avoiding repeated debridement.

Methods: This retrospective observational study was conducted on 150 AIFS patients operated on with the proposed surgical guidelines from May to June 2021 at a tertiary care hospital. Data including demography, comorbidities, surgical procedures, revision surgery, and outcome were collected and analyzed.

Results: All 150 patients underwent bilateral endoscopic sinonasal debridement. Among them, 108 patients (72%) had current or recent coronavirus disease (COVID) infection. Ninety-two patients (61.3%) required additional procedures based on disease extent. Twenty patients (15.4%) required revision debridement because of progressive or recurrent disease. Mean age of this group was 46.15 (standard deviation ±11.2) years with a strong male predominance (9:1). Seventeen had diabetes mellitus, 12 suffered from active COVID-19 infection and six had received corticosteroids. None of the 31 patients who had recovered from COVID-19 or had no comorbidities required revision surgery. Age, gender, and comorbidities were not significant predictors for revision surgery. Fourteen patients (70%) underwent second surgery within one month of primary surgery. Predominant disease locations were alveolus and palate (55% each), and in 80% the site was uninvolved at primary surgery. The most common revision procedure was inferior partial maxillectomy (60%). At follow-up, all were asymptomatic with no evidence of disease.

Conclusion: The proposed surgical guidelines for AIFS allow for adequate surgical debridement with preservation of optimum functional status. Low revision surgery rates and good outcomes with minimal morbidity validate its usefulness.

Labyrinthitis ossificans is the formation of pathological new bone within the membranous labyrinth of the inner ear due to various local and systemic pathologies. Most commonly it occurs as a sequelae of meningitis spreading to the labyrinth, from the subarachnoid space via the cochlear aqueduct and the internal auditory canal. We are comparing three different etiological presentations of labyrinthitis ossificans; namely, tympanogenic, meningitic, and traumatic, together with their management in the light of recent advances.

Deep neck infections are serious conditions and can present with acute upper airway obstruction. Our priority in the treatment is to ensure airway safety, and tracheotomy may be needed to overcome the upper airway obstruction. Unceasing dyspnea after tracheotomy should suggest serious pulmonary pathologies in patients with upper airway obstruction due to deep neck infection. Acute/chronic obstruction resolved after tracheotomy or upper respiratory tract surgical procedures of obstructive sleep apnea patients can turn into severe dyspnea with pulmonary edema. In this report, we present a 46-year-old male patient with negative pressure pulmonary edema as a complication of tracheotomy. The tracheotomy was performed due to severe upper airway obstruction secondary to a deep neck infection. The importance of early diagnosis and prompt treatment of this rare entity after unceasing dyspnea despite tracheotomy is discussed in the light of the current literature.

Objective: Fabry disease is a rare hereditary lysosomal storage disease caused by the deficiency of alpha-galactosidase A (α-GLA). Although sensorineural hearing loss is common in Fabry disease, there are no studies in the literature that have screened a population with sensorineural hearing loss for Fabry disease. In this study, we aimed to screen a group of patients who were diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss and underwent a hearing test for Fabry disease.

Methods: One hundred sixty eight patients who were aged 18-75 years and diagnosed with idiopathic hearing loss between July 2019 and January 2020 were included. In male patients, α-GLA enzyme activity was analyzed. Patients with low enzyme activity were identified and genetic testing was performed for mutations in the GLA gene. In females, only genetic testing was performed.

Results: Eighty four women and 84 men were included in the study. α-GLA enzyme activity was low in 11 of the 84 male patients (13%). One out of these 11 patients had a gene mutation for Fabry disease. Moreover, four relatives of this index patient were diagnosed with Fabry disease in family screening. GLA gene mutation was also found in one of the 84 female patients. Consequently, two (1.2%) of our 168 patients were diagnosed with Fabry disease by screening with enzyme activity and genetic testing.

Conclusion: Our study showed that screening for Fabry disease in patients with idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss without other specific findings might be a useful strategy for detecting new cases.

Objective: Vocal fold nodules (VFNs) are among the most common causes of dysphonia. Phono-laryngeal microsurgery, pharmacological treatments, and voice therapy (VT) have been used for treating VFNs. VT has been advocated as the primary treatment of choice. This study investigated the efficacy of the DoctorVox Voice therapy technique (DVT) for treating VFNs.

Methods: A total of 38 patients with VFNs and 40 individuals without any voice problem (control group) were included. All patients received the DVT program. Otorhinolaryngology examination, videolaryngostroboscopy (VLS), and acoustic analysis (SPL, mean F0, jitter %, shimmer %, NHR) were performed at pretreatment, one and six months after the end of treatment. The voice handicap index-10 (VHI-10) and the GRB scales were used for perceptual voice evaluation. GRB and VLS scorings were done blindly.

Results: Compared with the pretreatment values, the first- and the sixth-month values after treatment demonstrated a significant decrease in VHI-10 (19.5 vs. 5.1), GRB (2.3 vs 0.68 for G value) and VLS scores, SPL (54.4 vs 66.1 dB), F0 (201 vs. 227 Hz), jitter % (1.46 vs 0.85), shimmer % (3.27 vs 2.51), NHR (1.15 vs. 0.46) values among patients. Most of the voice parameters in the sixth month after the DVT program did not differ significantly from those of the control group.

Conclusion: The DVT was found to be an effective method in VFN treatment.

Orbital epidermoid cysts are uncommon lesions within the bony orbit with varied symptomatology related to both the eye and the sino-nasal system. They are often slow-growing cystic masses which may cause facial asymmetry and visual loss due to pressure symptoms. Cross-sectional imaging such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging are contributory and useful for assessment of the size and actual extent and should be mandatory before planning any surgical intervention. Open approaches and needle aspiration have been traditionally described; however, the use of the rigid nasal endoscope in the intraorbital compartment is a useful adjunct for exploration of the extent of the lesion and for complete surgical clearance. In this report, a 69 years old female with an old post- traumatic orbital epidermoid cyst which was removed completely using an endoscope via transorbital route was presented with the review of literature.