Jerry W. Templer

Partial Endoscopic Middle Turbinectomy Augmenting Functional Endoscopic Sinus Surgery

Endoscopic sinus surgery has gained acceptance in the otolaryngologic community as an effective and safe method of treating inflammatory disease of the paranasal sinuses. At our institution, partial endoscopic middle turbinectomy has become a standard component of the procedure and our experience is reported. Middle turbinectomy enhances surgical exposure, specific anatomic anomalies are more completely corrected, and subpopulations of patients at risk for failure because of their underlying disease enjoy decreased rates of synechiae formation and closure of the middle meatus antrostomy when followed over time. Photodocumentation of the surgical technique and a discussion regarding the impact of middle turbinectomy on normal nasal physiology are presented. It is reported that the procedure is safe, and no complications directly attributable to middle turbinectomy (including atrophic rhinitis) are reported in a series of 298 patients.

Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve Localization Using a Microlaryngeal Electrode

Damage to the recurrent laryngeal nerve is a frequently teen complication in head and neck surgery. A system for intraoperative monitoring of the recurrent laryngeal nerve is presented. The key to this system lies in the use of a microlaryngeal electrode and inserter. Application of this system to various situations is described.

Immediate tonsillectomy for the treatment of peritonsillar abscess

Our experience with 119 cases of peritonsillar abscess supports the experience of others, that immediate tonsillectomy is a safe treatment which provides prompt, complete drainage of the abscess. There was one episode of immediate postoperative hemorrhage and one of delayed bleeding, but there were no anesthetic complications. If one believes that the abscess is an indication for tonsillectomy and plans to perform the procedure at some time, we recommend that it be performed as the drainage procedure. The total hospitalization time will as a rule be shortened and a second convalescent period avoided. Its major drawback is the inconvenience of inserting a relative emergency into the schedule.

Middle meatus anstrostomy: patency rates and risk factors.

Two hundred patients with chronic sinusitis were operated on using functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) techniques. These patients were followed closely over 3 years. Patency of the endoscopic middle meatotomy was recorded using actuarial life-table methods. The overall patency rate of the endoscopic middle meatotomy was 93.55%, and the actuarial patency rate at 36 months was 87.47%. The presence of seasonal allergy with nasal polyps was the most important variable in predicting closure. Middle turbinectomy was the most important variable in predicting patency. Symptoms were evaluated by questionnaire at 1 year. Questionnaire data indicate that 96% of these patients are improved or asymptomatic.

Coordinated electrical pacing of vocal cord abductors in recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis

Electrodes were placed into the posterior cricoarytenoid and diaphragmatic muscles of five tracheostomized dogs. With the use of a sensor that would selectively detect diaphragmatic electromyographic activity, this activity served as a trigger and was amplified and interfaced with a muscle stimulator attached to electrodes placed in the posterior cricoarytenoid muscles. In all animals obvious physiologic synchrony of vocal fold abduction and a reduction of the negative inspiratory intratracheal pressure were observed during electrical pacing. This represents a preliminary step in the development of an alternative approach to the patient with bilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis.

Secondary and metastatic tumors of the orbit.

We have presented three cases of metastatic tumor to the orbit. The first case illustrated metastatic tumor that originated from a cutaneous basosquamous cell carcinoma. This lesion, first reported by MacCormac as being morphologically intermediate between basal and squamous cell carcinoma, has become a topic of some controversy. Conley reported these tumors to represent 1% of basal cell carcinomas. Several authors have reported a higher incidence of recurrence with these lesions, as compared with the ordinary basal cell tumors. Recurrence of basal cell carcinomas are reported as approximately 10%, but are four times greater in the basosquamous cell tumors. The incidence of metastasis with the basosquamous cell tumors has been reported in between 37% and 51% of cases. The second case represented involvement of the orbit by direct extension of a facial squamous cell carcinoma. As illustrated by this case, these tumors can be very aggressive and should be treated with respect. The third case showed the metastatic potential of the nephroblastoma with metastatic tumor that involved the eye, orbit, and maxilla. Diagnostic techniques available in evaluation of these tumors include CT scan, magnetic resonance (MR) imaging, ultrasound, open biopsy, and fine-needle aspiration. Li et al., in an article that compared MR imaging, CT scan, and ultrasound concluded that MR imaging, with the use of the 0.15 T resistive magnet, offered no distinct advantage over the combination of CT and ultrasound in evaluation of patients with orbital tumors.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The Difficult Airway

Securing the airway in a dyspneic patient is a challenging task because of the myriad causes and presentations. Initial assessment may demonstrate factors indicative of upper airway abnormalities; however, they may not be specific nor sensitive enough to accurately predict difficult intubation. A well-equipped airway cart must be immediately available. A standardized escalating approach to secure the airway in a difficult situation begins with a rapid sequence of attempts at standard intubation, followed by attempted tube introduction over a bougie or using a flexible endoscope or laryngeal mask, and finally surgical interventions including cricothyrotomy or tracheotomy.

Temporalis pericranial muscle flap for reconstruction of the lateral face and head

Large ablative surgical tissue defects of the lateral face and head can pose a difficult task for the reconstructive surgeon who must choose from among a large variety of possible reparativce techniques. In many situations the temporalis pericranial muscle flap offers the outstanding feature of providing a large amount of soft tissue at no direct expense of donor site skin cover. It is easily obtained and results in negligible functional loss. With care taken to preserve the neurovascular pedicle, this flap may be rotated in multiple directions and even overturned as either surface can receive surface skin closure. The amount of operative time and effort required is much less than for many of the more elaborate reconstructive flaps. Five representative cases are presented.

Parotid fistula and tympanic neurectomy.

Parotid fistula is most commonly a posttraumatic situation. In posttraumatic cases, spontaneous closure of the fistula is the general rule. Conservative approaches to the occurrence of a parotid fistula are eliminating oral intake by the patient and applying a pressure dressing while maintaining nutrition by the intravenous route. Anticholinergic drugs decrease the production of saliva and thus would appear to be beneficial. When a parotid fistula does not heal under these conditions, then more aggressive treatment is indicated. Treatment should be based on whether the fistula is ductal or glandular in origin. Several methods of treatment have been advocated in the past. Low dose radiotherapy has been mentioned by some authorities as the treatment of choice for parotid fistula. This was used in one of our patients without response. Excision of the fistulous tract with ligation of the parotid duct has been advocated by some authorities. Tympanic neurectomy appears to be a satisfactory method of dealing with selected parotid duct fistulas, and glandular fistulas are best treated by tympanic neurectomy. Suppression of parasympathetic activity by the use of tympanic neurectomy has been said on some occasions to be transient (for example, Freys syndrome). In dealing with parotid fistulas it would not appear to matter whether the effects are transient or permanent. The suppression of activity by tympanic neurectomy lasts long enough to allow for healing of the fistulous tract and relief of symptoms.

Aspiration Cytology for Diagnosis of Head and Neck Masses

Most American clinicians have been reluctant to utilize aspiration biopsy due to poor interpretive skills by the pathologists in the past and a fear of tumor spread by the needle. Voluminous European series and recent American series have proved aspiration to be safe and reliable. In our series of 78 cases, both thin-needle aspiration and conventional tissue biopsies were made. The diagnoses were compared and the overall agreement rate was 90%.