Kenichi Maruoka

Tape attachment therapy for correction of congenital malformations of the auricle: Clinical and experimental studies†

After the auricular cartilage of 5‐week‐old rabbits was bent and fixed by suture, the cartilage increased in thickness in a short period of time. The thickness was maximal 6 weeks later and slightly greater than that of the control cartilage 12 weeks later. At this stage, the auricle was fixed in curved form. There was no difference in the morphology of cartilage cells between the bent group and the control.

Topical immunology of nasal allergy and mucosal IgE antibodies

SummaryIn the present study, the in vitro tissue-radioallergosorbent test (t-RAST) was performed in two groups of patients: one with perennial attacks of sneezing, serous hypersecretion and nasal congestion, the other with nasal congestion only. The results obtained were compared with those obtained by a series of conventional allergy tests. We then found that t-RAST provided objective data comparable to those obtained with serum-RAST and that the t-RAST is a reliable means of quantitatively detecting specific IgE antibodies in the nasal mucosa. t-RAST is of special value to diagnosticians because it is able to discern unequivocally and easily those patients with localized nasal allergy.

The Ciliary Activity of the Middle Ear Lining-functional and Morphological Observation

Since the middle ear lining is an extension and a modification of the respiratory mucosa, it is conceivable that it has a mucociliary system and it plays an important role in clearance of the tympanic cavity. It was already noted in morphological studies that the middle ear lining had ciliated cells. To our knowledge, however, ciliary activity has never been observed directly. In the present paper, the ciliary activity of the middle ear mucosa was investigated directly and quantitatively by the photo-electric method of Ohashi and Nakai. In this work, special reference was made to the frequency of ciliary beating at various sites within the tympanic cavity. Ciliary activity was found to exist in the Eustachian tube and middle ear same as in other respiratory epithelium and this activity by ciliated cells was more active as their location became more distal to the Eustachian tube. Although the present results are preliminary, the techniques used in this study will provide a new avenue of the investigation of pathological middle ear lining.

The Ciliary Activity of the Middle Ear Lining in Some Pathological States

The ciliary activity in some pathological middle ear lining was discussed with special reference to the morphology of the epithelial cells in this paper. The changes in ciliary activity due to in vitro Staphylococcus aureus injection did not practically show any differences between the sites. On the other hand, the time-course changes in ciliary activity after in vivo S. aureus injection were found to differ between the sites. Ciliary activity was rather accelerated at the proximal site, while it was decelerated at the distal site. Few changes but for sporadic small compound cilia were observed at the proximal site, and some inflammatory changes were noted at the epithelium of the distal site. SO2 exposure affected the middle ear lining of rabbits. Fourteen days after 4 weeks exposure to SO2, the middle ear lining displayed declined ciliary activity and many signs suggestive of secretory asthenia. In addition, the middle ear lining of rabbits given about 600 mg carbocysteine, both during and 2 weeks after the exposure displayed excellent ciliary activity and normal morphology of the epithelial structure.

Light and electron microscopic studies of a case with simultaneous Mondini and Michel deformities of the inner ears

SummaryWe performed light and electron microscopic studies on the temporal bones of a patient with genetic aplastic deafness, in which the right ear had a Mondini-type defect and the left ear a Michel-type anomaly. The round window of each ear was absent. The stapedial foot plate of the right ear was depressed at its central part and was covered by thin membrane. The course of the internal auditory meatus of the left ear was deviated ventrally. There was total aplasia of the cochlea in the left ear, while that of the right ear showed only three-quarters of a turn. In this ear, three sites of spherical bulging were found and were believed to represent outer hair cells. Other structures of the normal cochlear duct were not present. The modiolus of the left ear was round and dome-shaped, contained sparse nerve fibers and a primitive spiral ganglion. The saccule, utricle and semicircular canals of each ear were missing, so that a common cavity of the vestibular system was present. Several otoliths could be seen under the surface of the membrane covering the common cavity. No sensory cells or their related tissues could be found in either ear.

Two cases of a bifid nose.

We encountered a 7-month-old female and a 15-year-old male with bifid nose which was treated surgically.In the first patient, thick skin with a longitudinal fissure extending along the nasal dorsum was excised in a spindle-shape. Four incisions parallel to the nasal septum were performed, two of which were made along the nasal septum; the other incisions ran lateral to them. Thus, the nasal cartilages were sutured centrally for augmentation. The remaining orbital hypertelorism will require correction by craniofacial surgery in the future.In the second patient, the nasal dorsum was flattened and covering skin was normal. However, a small concavity was detected on the nasal tip. This deformity was easily corrected by augmentation rhinoplasty using a silicone prosthesis.The classification and etiology of a bifid nose are reviewed, and introduce the ‘Cleft Numbering System’ of Tessier.