Naresh K. Panda

Fungal Rhinosinusitis: A Categorization and Definitional Schema Addressing Current Controversies

Fungal (rhino‐) sinusitis encompasses a wide spectrum of immune and pathological responses, including invasive, chronic, granulomatous, and allergic disease. However, consensus on terminology, pathogenesis, and optimal management is lacking. The International Society for Human and Animal Mycology convened a working group to attempt consensus on terminology and disease classification.

The rising trend of invasive zygomycosis in patients with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus

Zygomycosis is an emerging infection worldwide. A study was conducted to understand its spectrum in the Indian scenario. All patients diagnosed for invasive zygomycosis at a tertiary care center in north India from 2000-2004, were retrospectively analyzed. A total of 178 cases (mean average of 35.6 cases/year) of zygomycosis were diagnosed. Rhino-orbito-cerebral type (54.5%) was the commonest presentation followed by cutaneous (14.6%), disseminated (9.0%), and gastrointestinal (8.4%) zygomycosis. Renal and pulmonary zygomycosis were seen in 6.7% patients each. Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (in 73.6% of cases) was the significant risk factor in all types (Odds Ratio 1.5-8.0) except renal zygomycosis. Breach of skin was the risk factor in 46.2% patients with cutaneous zygomycosis. However, no risk factor could be detected in 11.8% patients. Antemortem diagnosis was possible in 83.7% cases. The commonest (61.5%) isolate was Rhizopus oryzae followed by Apophysomyces elegans in 27% patients. Combination of debridement surgery and amphotericin B therapy was significantly better in survival of the patients (P<0.005) than amphotericin B alone (79.6% vs. 51.7% survival). Thus, a rising trend of invasive zygomycosis was observed in patients with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus in India. Consistent diagnosis of renal zygomycosis in apparently healthy hosts and the emergence of A. elegans in India demand further study.

Paranasal sinus mycoses in north India

Summary. Recognizing the high incidence of paranasal sinus mycoses in north India, we analysed retrospectively the clinical, mycological and management aspects of 178 patients with proven disease attending our institute. On the basis of clinical, radiological, histopathological and mycological findings, the patients could be categorized into those with allergic (8), non‐invasive (92) and invasive (78) disease types. Bony erosion without mucosal invasion by fungi was seen in 16 patients with non‐invasive disease. Young men from rural areas were the most commonly affected. Rhinorrhoea with nasal polyposis (45.8%) and proptosis (46.4%) was the most common presentation. Concurrent involvement of the maxillary and ethmoid sinuses was common in these patients, whereas isolated sphenoid and frontal sinuses were involved in the invasive variety only. Orbital and intracranial extensions were detected in 100% and 13.2%, respectively, of patients with the invasive type of disease. Aspergillus flavus (79.7%) was the most common isolate. Surgical debridement and sinus ventilation were adequate for the effective management of the non‐invasive disease. However, adjuvant medical therapy was included in treatment of the semi‐invasive and invasive varieties of the disease. Itraconazole was found to be most useful in prevention of recurrence in the invasive type. Mortality was highest (33.3%) among patients with zygomycotic infection. Invasive fungal granuloma with orbital and intracranial invasion is a distinct entity in terms of its clinical course and treatment compared with non‐invasive fungal sinusitis, and it needs to be treated aggressively with surgical excision and postoperative itraconazole.

Efficacy of Particle Repositioning Maneuver in BPPV: A Prospective Study

PURPOSE A single blinded prospective randomized controlled trial was conducted in 40 patients with benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV) to determine the efficacy of particle repositioning maneuver (PRM). MATERIALS AND METHODS Out of 40 patients, 20 underwent PRM with the rest receiving a placebo treatment. Postprocedural instructions were given to all the patients who underwent PRM. Follow-up was for 1 year at regular intervals. Analysis was based on the symptomatic status and the Hallpike maneuver at each visit. RESULTS After the initial week, 95% showed complete resolution of symptoms with none reporting a recurrence after PRM. On the contrary, only 15% of the controls had complete resolution with 14 out of 20 reporting a recurrence of BPPV. Results remained more or less the same at the end of 4 weeks. Six months after PRM, 19 of 20 patients had no vertigo with a meager 5% showing recurrence versus 75% of controls reporting a recurrence with only 3 of 20 reporting a favorable symptom status. At the end of 1 year, 18 of 20 patients had complete relief from symptoms with only 10% showing Hallpike maneuver positive in the study group compared with 3 of 20 reporting a relief from symptoms with 90% turning out to be Hallpike maneuver positive in the control group. CONCLUSIONS This study establishes the efficacy of PRM in short- and long-term management of BPPV; the procedure is easy and simple.

Spectrum of fungal rhinosinusitis; histopathologist's perspective

Aims: Clinical presentation can provide a clue to the subcategories of fungal rhinosinusitis (FRS); however, tissue examination provides accurate classification. The aim was to analyse the incidence and histopathological spectrum of FRS.

Mucormycosis in immunocompetent individuals : An increasing trend

OBJECTIVE Mucormycosis is a fatal infection of the immunocompromised individual. It is unusual to affect healthy individuals. We report eight such cases of infection caused by this emerging fungal pathogen in healthy patients. Of the eight cases, three were infected with Apophysomyces elegans, again an unusual pathogen causing mucormycosis. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective case review conducted at a tertiary referral center. METHODS From 1999 to 2003, eight cases of mucormycosis were managed in otherwise healthy patients. Seven of them were treated with surgery. Clinical presentation, imaging studies, mycologic findings, operative findings at surgery, and postoperative results were evaluated. A review of the literature pertaining to mucormycosis infecting otherwise healthy patients and A. elegans infecting otherwise healthy patients in the nose and paranasal sinuses also was done. RESULTS Of the eight cases, three were infected with A. elegans, with no history of trauma or any invasive procedure. Seven patients underwent surgical treatment. Histopathologic examination showed broad, sparsely aseptate, thin-walled hyphae and angioinvasion with thrombosis. CONCLUSION Mucormycosis must be considered in the differential diagnosis of any severe acute headache, sinusitis, or orbital cellulites, not only in immunocompromised patients but also in the absence of any underlying disease. Successful treatment requires tissue débridement and injection of amphotericin B.

CONTROVERSIES SURROUNDING THE CATEGORIZATION OF FUNGAL SINUSITIS

Though rhinosinusitis is a common disorder, controversies surround the categorization of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and the role of fungus in CRS. The diagnosis of each category is important for optimum therapy and predicting the course. Based on histopathological findings, fungal rhinosinusitis (FRS) can be broadly divided into two categories: the invasive and non-invasive depending on invasion of the mucosal layer. Three types of FRS are tissue-invasive: acute invasive, chronic invasive, & granulomatous. The two non-invasive FRS disorders are fungal ball, and fungus related eosinophilic rhinosinusitis including allergic fungal rhinosinusitis (AFRS). The distinction of granulomatous from chronic invasive type is not beyond controversy as both types have a chronic course and predominant orbital involvement. Maximum confusion surrounds the entity of fungus-related eosinophilic rhinosinusitis, and the definition of AFRS. In the diagnosis of AFRS, the detection of fungi in allergic mucin is considered important, although hyphae are sparse in sinus content. This leads to confusion in definition of this entity, especially with the description of two more closely related entities--eosinophilic fungal rhinosinusitis (EFRS) and eosinophilic mucin rhinosinusitis (EMRS). Recently reports of histologic invasion in possible cases of AFRS were also documented. Currently, there are more questions than answers concerning the categorization of FRS.

Migraine and audiovestibular dysfunction: is there a correlation?

PURPOSE To study the audiovestibular functions in cases of migraine with or without vertigo. MATERIALS AND METHODS This was a prospective study involving 50 cases of migraine who were divided into 2 groups: patients with vertigo and those without. All patients underwent a detailed otological and neurootological examination followed by full audiological and vestibular investigation including pure tone audiometry, speech reception threshold, speech discrimination score, tone decay, short increment sensitivity index, auditory brainstem-evoked responses, and electronystagmography (ENG). RESULTS Thirty-eight (76%) of 50 patients had vertigo on presentation, of which rotatory nonpositional vertigo (22/38) was the most common. Phonophobia was the most common auditory symptom (35/50, 70%) followed by tinnitus (25/50, 50%). Only 17 patients (34%) reported hearing loss, of whom only 7 had documented hearing loss on pure tone audiometry. However, the auditory brainstem-evoked responses of all these patients showed some abnormalities in the form of prolonged absolute latency or prolonged interwave peak latencies or both. Electronystagmography revealed canal paresis in 13 patients (26%), although there was no statistical difference between patients with or without vertigo on various electronystagmographic parameters. CONCLUSION Auditory brainstem-evoked response abnormalities may be the earliest indicator of impending auditory involvement in migraine.

Paranasal sinus aspergillosis: its categorization to develop a treatment protocol

A prospective study was conducted in 25 consecutive patients of paranasal sinus aspergillosis to categorize and treat them based on a fixed treatment protocol. The three types of aspergillosis categorized as per definitive criteria were chronic invasive (six), non‐invasive (fungus ball) (seven) and non‐invasive destructive (12). Adjuvant chemotherapy was employed in non‐invasive destructive and chronic invasive disease. Ketoconazole was used in the first variety and itroconazole in the latter. Only two patients had recurrence after a mean follow‐up of 11 months (range: 6–20 months). They belonged to the non‐invasive destructive category and the recurrence had progressed to invasive variety. It is suggested that non‐invasive destructive disease should be followed up regularly with endoscopic examination, CT and fungal serology to detect recurrence. Categorization of the paranasal sinus aspergillosis helps to institute proper treatment. Adjuvant chemotherapy in the form of ketoconazole along with surgery is effective in non‐invasive destructive disease to prevent recurrence and progression to invasive disease. Chronic invasive disease with its propensity to involve orbit and intracranial cavity should be managed at the earliest with surgery and itraconazole.

Epidemiology of chronic fungal rhinosinusitis in rural India

A descriptive epidemiological study of fungal rhinosinusitis (FRS) was conducted in rural north India in the form of house‐to‐house survey of villages of two districts each of Punjab and Haryana provinces using a clinical case definition of chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). The suspected cases were investigated further in the laboratory to confirm FRS. Air and environment were sampled in different seasons to find Aspergillus spore count. The prevalence of chronic FRS cases was at 0.11% of the population and Aspergillus flavus was the predominant (97.6%) agent of all types of chronic FRS. The chronic FRS patients were classified as allergic FRS 41 (56.1%), chronic granulomatous FRS 13 (17.8%), eosinophilic FRS 11 (15.0%), fungal ball 7 (9.5%) and chronic invasive FRS 1 (1.3%). Aspergillus spores were present in large numbers (~20%) in air with significantly higher counts of A. flavus during winter months in the wheat‐thrashing areas of Punjab as compared to Haryana (P = 0.0079). The present study identified high prevalence (27.5% of CRS cases) of chronic FRS cases in rural north India and its possible association with wheat harvesting seasons.