Mario Turri-Zanoni

Sinonasal mucosal melanoma: Molecular profile and therapeutic implications from a series of 32 cases

Primary sinonasal mucosal melanomas are aggressive tumors with a poor clinical control by current treatments, raising the urgent need of novel strategies.

Quality of life following endoscopic endonasal resection of anterior skull base cancers.

OBJECT For several decades, the exclusive purpose in the management of anterior skull base malignancies has been to increase survival rates. Recently, given the improved prognosis achieved, more attention has been focused on quality of life (QOL) as well. Producing data on QOL in anterior skull base cancers is hampered by the rarity of the neoplasm and the lack of specific questionnaires. The purpose of this study was to assess health-related QOL in a large and homogeneous cohort of patients affected by anterior skull base cancers who had undergone endoscopic endonasal resection. METHODS The authors conducted a retrospective review of patients treated for sinonasal and skull base cancers via an endoscopic endonasal approach at two Italian tertiary care referral centers. All patients were asked to complete the Anterior Skull Base Surgery Questionnaire to evaluate their QOL before and 1 month and 1 year after surgical treatment. To assess which parameters affect QOL, the study population was divided into subgroups according to age, sex, stage of disease, surgical approach, and adjuvant therapy. RESULTS One hundred fifty-three patients were enrolled in this study according to the adopted inclusion criteria. Overall QOL started at a score of 4.68 for the preoperative period, sharply decreased as far as a score of 4.03 during the 1st postoperative month, and rose again to a score of 4.59 over the course of 1 year after treatment, with a significant difference among the 3 values (p < 0.05). The specific symptoms and physical status domains registered poorer results at the 1-year assessment (4.00 and 4.71, respectively) than at the preoperative assessment (both domains 4.86), with a statistically significant reduction in scores (p < 0.05). Worse outcomes were associated with several variables: age > 60 years (difference of 0.21 points between the preoperative and 1-year period, p < 0.05), expanded surgical approaches with transnasal craniectomy (decrease of 0.20 points between the preoperative and 1-year period, p < 0.05), and postoperative radiotherapy (score of 4.53 at the 1-year period vs. 4.70 in patients without any adjuvant treatment, p < 0.05). No statistically significant differences were found when analyzing the study population according to sex (p > 0.1) and T classification of disease at presentation (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Radical endoscopic endonasal resection led to either complete or at least partial recovery of patient QOL within the 1st postoperative year.

Endoscopic endonasal surgery for malignancies of the anterior cranial base

OBJECTIVE Data from several centers worldwide have demonstrated that transnasal endoscopic surgery performed with or without a transcranial approach is capable of achieving radical resection of selected sinonasal malignancies. We report our experience with endoscopic management of sinonasal cancers, with emphasis on naso-ethmoidal malignancies encroaching on the anterior skull base. METHODS Major series reporting results concerning the endoscopic endonasal approach with or without craniectomy for treatment of sinonasal and anterior skull base cancers were reviewed. Preoperative work-up, indications and exclusion criteria, surgical techniques, postoperative management, and adjuvant therapy are reported. RESULTS In the 2 largest series analyzed, the most common malignancies were adenocarcinoma (28%), olfactory neuroblastoma (14.5%), and squamous cell carcinoma (13.5%). The 5-year disease-specific survival rate ranged from 81.9%-87%, with no major differences in the mean follow-up time (34.1 months vs. 37 months). CONCLUSIONS Endoscopic endonasal resection performed with or without a transcranial approach, when properly planned and in expert hands, has an accepted role with precise indications in the surgeons armamentarium for the treatment of sinonasal and skull base malignancies.

Endoscopic Endonasal Transpterygoid Transmaxillary Approach to the Infratemporal and Upper Parapharyngeal Tumors

Objectives To describe the endoscopic transnasal approach to the infratemporal fossa (ITF) and upper parapharyngeal space (UPS) and to analyze the indications and outcomes of this surgical technique in the management of the tumors localized in this critical area. Study Design Case series with chart review. Setting Tertiary-care referral center. Patients and Methods Retrospective review of patients with benign and malignant tumors arising in or extending to the ITF and UPS, treated from 2002 to 2012 at a single institute. The tumors were surgically resected using an endoscopic endonasal transpterygoid transmaxillary approach. Results Thirty-seven consecutive patients with benign tumors (20 juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibromas, 2 extracranial trigeminal Schwannomas, 2 meningiomas, 1 cavernous hemangioma) and nonmetastatic malignant tumors (2 adenoid-cystic carcinoma, 1 mucoepidermoid carcinoma, 1 squamous cell carcinoma, 1 adenocarcinoma, 1 recurrence of chondrosarcoma, and 6 recurrences of undifferentiated carcinoma of nasopharyngeal type) were treated with curative intent. A gross-total resection was achieved in 35 of 37 patients. Major complications were observed in 1 case (intraoperative internal carotid artery blowout). Postoperatively, 8 patients received some form of adjuvant treatment. Mean follow-up was 30 months for malignancies and 60 months for benign tumors. All patients are now alive without recurrences. Stable intracranial persistence of disease was reported in 2 cases (1 meningioma and 1 adenoid-cystic carcinoma). Conclusion The purely endoscopic endonasal technique may provide a minimally invasive and safe approach to radically resect selected tumors involving the ITF and UPS. Larger case series and longer follow-up are needed to validate the reproducibility and efficacy of this technique.

Endoscopic Endonasal Nasopharyngectomy in Selected Cancers

Objective To describe the different surgical techniques for nasopharyngeal endoscopic resection (NER) and to support the efficacy of the endoscopic endonasal approach in the management of selected primary and locally recurrent nasopharyngeal tumors (NPTs). Study Design Case series with chart review. Setting Patients affected by NPTs who underwent NER from 1997 to 2011 at two Italian referral centers. Subjects and Methods NER was tailored to the NPT extension and classified as follows: type 1 NER, resection of the posterior nasopharyngeal wall; type 2 NER, resection superiorly extended to the sphenoid; type 3 NER, trans-pterygoid approach to the postero-lateral nasopharynx with removal of pterygoid plates and Eustachian tube, under control of parapharyngeal-petrous-cavernous segments of the internal carotid artery. Results Thirty-six consecutive patients with primary (9 cases) or locally recurrent (27 cases) NPTs were enrolled. The lesions were staged as follows: stage I, 16 (44.4%); stage II, 3 (8.4%); stage III, 15 (41.6%); and stage IVA, 2 (5.6%). Type 1 NER was performed in 6 cases, type 2 NER in 12, type 3 NER in 16, and bilateral-extended type 3 NER in 2. No perioperative mortality or major complications were observed. Postoperatively, 11 patients received intensity-modulated radiotherapy, with or without chemotherapy. Follow-up ranged from 2 to 173 months (mean: 38 months). Five years overall, disease-specific, and disease-free survivals were 75.1% ± 9.13%, 80.9% ± 7.79%, and 58.1% ± 14.8%, respectively. Conclusion NER is a feasible and minimally invasive surgical approach for the management of selected primary and locally recurrent NPTs. Our preliminary outcomes are promising, with local control rates comparable to those of conventional procedures. Larger case series and longer follow-up are needed to validate the reproducibility and efficacy of the technique.

Frontoethmoidal and Intraorbital Osteomas Exploring the Limits of the Endoscopic Approach

OBJECTIVE To review our experience with the surgical treatment of frontoethmoidal osteomas, focusing on the osteomas that were either localized laterally in the frontal sinus or showing intraorbital involvement. DESIGN Retrospective evaluation. SETTING Tertiary care center. PATIENTS Patients with symptomatic frontoethmoidal or intraorbital osteomas who had been treated surgically from 1996 through 2011. INTERVENTION Sixty frontoethmoidal osteomas were treated surgically. The lesion involved the far lateral portion of the frontal sinus in 23 cases and the orbital region in 6 cases. In 31 cases, a purely endoscopic approach was performed while a combined procedure was used in 25 patients. In 4 patients, an exclusively external approach was required. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE No recurrence of osteoma. RESULTS Radical resection was obtained, except in the case of 2 lesions. No osteoma recurrence was observed during a mean follow-up of 72.6 months. CONCLUSIONS The size of the osteoma, far lateral extension of the tumor in the frontal sinus beyond the lamina papyracea, and intraorbital involvement are no longer absolute contraindications for purely transnasal endoscopic resection. What is important is that the surgeon should not be dogmatic but rather be ready to change his or her mind during surgery, shifting to an external approach when required.

Multiportal Combined Transorbital Transnasal Endoscopic Approach for the Management of Selected Skull Base Lesions: Preliminary Experience.

BACKGROUND Skull base lesions are challenging to treat and may be managed using several approaches each with its own advantages and limitations. In selected cases, a modular, combined, multiportal approach could overcome the limits of a single approach and respond well to the needs of the patient. METHODS We report a preclinical study on 5 cadaveric specimens and 4 preliminary clinical experiences with the combined multiportal transnasal transorbital endoscopic approach for the management of selected complex skull base pathologies. The technical feasibility and safety of this combined approach were evaluated in the preclinical study. The applicability in vivo of such an approach, together with early and late complications, specific morbidity, and hospitalization time were analyzed in the preliminary clinical experiences. RESULTS The transnasal endoscopic extended approach combined with the transorbital endoscopic approach offered greater visualization and tissue handling than a single approach alone could. The multiportal combined transorbital transnasal endoscopic approach was used effectively in vivo to resect 1 case of malignant schwannoma arising from the second branch of the trigeminal nerve and 3 cases of spheno-orbital meningioma without significant complications and with minimal morbidity for the patients. CONCLUSIONS The multiportal combined transorbital transnasal endoscopic approach is a safe and effective procedure for management of selected complex skull base lesions that is able to capitalize on the advantages and overcome the limitations of each single approach. This combined approach offers a multiperspective view of the spaces and allows for a more synergized procedure, especially when dealing with multicompartmental lesions.

Endoscopic Endonasal Management of Orbital Pathologies

Based on the anatomic relationship between sinonasal complex and orbit, endoscopic transnasal procedures could be a smart solution for approaching the medial orbital region. These techniques should be considered a valid option for optic nerve or orbital wall decompression in cases of Graves ophthalmopathy and post-traumatic optic neuropathy as well as for addressing extraconal or intraconal lesions placed medially to the optic nerve course. This article describes the anatomic principles, indications, technical nuances, and limitations of the endoscopic endonasal approaches for the management of selected orbital pathologic abnormalities.

Sinonasal mucosal melanoma: A 12-year experience of 58 cases

Sinonasal mucosal melanoma is a rare malignancy with poor prognosis.

Endoscopic endonasal anatomy of superior orbital fissure and orbital apex regions: critical considerations for clinical applications.

The superior orbital fissure is a critical three-dimensional space connecting the middle cranial fossa and the orbit. From an endoscopic viewpoint, only the medial aspect has a clinical significance. It presents a critical relationship with the lateral sellar compartment, the pterygopalatine fossa and the middle cranial fossa. The connective tissue layers and neural and vascular structures of this region are described. The role of Muller’s muscle is confirmed, and the utility of the maxillary and optic strut is outlined. Muller’s muscle extends for the whole length of the inferior orbital fissure, passes over the maxillary strut and enters the superior orbital fissure, representing a critical surgical landmark. Dividing the tendon between the medial and inferior rectus muscle allows the identification of the main trunk of the oculomotor nerve, and a little laterally, it is usually possible to visualize the first part of the ophthalmic artery. Based on a better knowledge of anatomy, we trust that this area could be readily addressed in clinical situations requiring an extended approach in proximity of the orbital apex.