Surgical technique and validation of outcome assessment in sagittal synostosis.

BACKGROUND: Aim of the study was to evaluate the outcome of children operated for sagittal synostosis, with special attention paid to the postoperative aesthetic result, as seen from the parents' and the treating medical doctors' perspective, and to assess the time point for operative correction. METHODS: A retrospective chart review of 87 patients operated over 15 years was performed. Data included age at the time of operation, perioperative complications, duration of hospital stay, intraoperative blood loss, transfusion volume, neurological outcome, and postoperative skull growth. Aesthetic outcome was assessed at 6, 12 and 18 months after surgery separately by the treating medical team and the children's parents. RESULTS: Sagittal synostosis was diagnosed in 98.9% of cases in the first six months of life. We performed the same operative technique in all children with bilateral total removal of parietal bones. The median age at operation was 5 months. There was no correlation between age at the time of operation and blood loss (p<0.602). 5.7% of the children presented with significant postoperative skull asymmetries. All of these children had undergone operation in the first four months of life (p<0.01). The evaluation of the postoperative aesthetic outcome as seen by parents and doctors was highly convergent, with 79.3% of children in the excellent or good outcome group CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the feasible time period for the method used by us is around the 5th - 6th month of life, with satisfying results. With regard to the aesthetic outcome assessment we recommend our approach using validation by parents as a valuable new principle.

Non-HIV-associated Kaposi's sarcoma of the tongue. Case report and review of the literature.

Kaposi's sarcoma is a frequently seen AIDS-related malignant neoplasm in the head and neck region, especially in the oral cavity, but is rarely described in the HIV-negative and non-immunosuppressed individual. The case of a 76-year-old HIV-negative, non-immunocompromised woman with a solitary Kaposi's sarcoma of the tongue is reported. The tumour was locally excised with subsequent local radiotherapy. Diagnosis and therapy are discussed and compared with a review of the contemporary literature.