The effect of COVID-19 pandemic on laryngeal cancer in a tertiary referral center.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate whether there was a significant change in the laryngeal cancer stage before and after the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study was conducted to evaluate the data of patients who operated due to laryngeal cancer in a tertiary referral hospital's ear, nose, and throat (ENT) department between June 2018 and 2021. The patients were included at the same period of the years to rule out any seasonal changes. The basic characteristic, tumor localization, and TNM stage of the patients were compared. RESULTS: 97 patients were operated due to laryngeal cancer during the time period reviewed. 57 (58.8%) patients were operated before and 40 (41.2%) after the COVID-19 pandemic. When comparing the patients before and after the COVID-19 pandemic period, the mean age significantly differed between the study groups that older age was observed in patients who admitted before the COVID-19 pandemic (62.8 ± 6.5 vs. 57.3 ± 6.8, p < 0.001). Regarding the TNM classification, the patients in the after COVID-19 pandemic group had higher rates of T4 stage laryngeal cancer compared to before COVID-19 pandemic group (12 (30%) vs. 4 (7%), p: 0.003). CONCLUSION: Younger patients have operated after the COVID-19 pandemic, and the patients were presented with larger tumor sizes. The pandemic may increase the time between diagnosis and surgery in laryngeal cancer patients.

A Retrospective Analysis of Nasopharyngeal Biopsy Results in Adult Patients.

Introduction The widespread use of endoscopic evaluation in otolaryngology practice enables early diagnosis and treatment of nasopharyngeal cancers. This study aimed to evaluate the complaints, endoscopic examination findings, preferred radiological imaging methods, and pathology results of patients who underwent endoscopic nasopharyngeal biopsy. Methods Medical records of 956 patients (543 males and 413 females) who underwent nasopharyngeal biopsy between 2013 and 2018 were analyzed retrospectively. Age, gender, application complaint, endoscopic imaging findings, preferred radiological imaging methods, and biopsy results of the patients were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were grouped as benign and malignant according to their pathological diagnosis. Statistical evaluation was made between the benign and malignant groups in terms of parameters. Results The age range of the patients was 16-88 years. Pathology results of 102 patients were reported as malignancy. The most common malignancy was undifferentiated non-keratinized carcinoma (2.5%). The most frequently reported benign pathology was chronic nonspecific inflammation. The most common complaint was nasal congestion, which was observed at a rate of 63.1%. The most frequently requested radiological imaging was MRI with 43.1%. Conclusion The image of the masses found during endoscopic examination is very important to make a decision of malignancy. Even if the repeated biopsy is performed in patients with biopsy due to suspicious mass or with additional symptoms for nasopharyngeal carcinoma, radiological imaging is important for the exclusion of malignancy.

Effects of hyaluronic acid-collagen nanofibers on early wound healing in vocal cord trauma.

BACKGROUND: Vocal cord scarring is the most crucial obstacle in voice quality after surgery. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of hyaluronic acid (HA)-collagen nanofibers on the healing of vocal cords after surgical trauma. METHOD: Right vocal cords of 12 New Zealand white rabbits were traumatized, and the experimental group was received 1.08 mg/75 ml topical HA-collagen nanofiber (Gelfix® spray) for 3 days. Three animals in each group were sacrificed on the 7th day, and the remaining of the animals were sacrificed on the 21st day. The laryngeal specimens in the experimental and control groups were examined histopathologically. RESULT: The 7th-day H&E staining evaluation revealed pink, dense, and thin collagen fibers. Besides, the collagen content was scattered and irregular in the experimental group. The 21st-day assessment showed that the collagen bundles in the granulation tissue were almost with the same formation in both of the groups. Masson Trichrome staining on the 7th day of the study showed that the collagen fiber bundles were less frequent in the control group than the experimental group. The 7th-day Van Gieson staining analysis showed that the pattern of reticular fibers was more regular with the parallel formation in the experimental group than the control group. CONCLUSION: HA-collagen nanofiber can be used in diseases that impair voice quality due to the thickening of the lamina propria layer in the vocal cord and impaired viscoelasticity due to fibrosis after tissue trauma.

Evaluation of the relationship of chronic otitis media with the Körner's septum, auditory tube angle, and tubotympanic angle.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the relationships between chronic otitis media (COM) and the characteristics of Auditory tube (Eustachian) angle (ATa), tubotympanic angle (TTa), and Körner's septum (KS). METHODS: A retrospective research was conducted between January 2019 and October 2019. The computed tomography (CT) results and medical files of 210 patients were evaluated. According to CT results and medical files, the patients were evaluated regarding the presence of COM, KS, ATa, and TTa. RESULTS: There were 113 (53.81%) males and 97 (46.19%) females in the study group, and the mean age of the patients was 42.05 ± 10.77 years. The frequency of the KS was significantly higher in patients who were diagnosed with COM (35.66% vs. 7.41%, p < 0.001). The patients diagnosed with COM were found to have a narrower ATa and a wider TTa than the patients who were not diagnosed with COM. ATa was narrower and TTa was wider in patients with KS. The presence of KS and higher TTa value were considered as risk factors for COM (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, respectively) CONCLUSION:  Our findings indicate that ATa was narrower, TTa was wider and KS was more frequent in patients with COM. Analysis of risk factors demonstrated that increased TTa and the presence of KS were associated with increased risk for COM.

Otolaryngological symptoms in COVID-19.

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency of various otolaryngological symptoms in patients with COVID-19 with regard to age, gender and pneumonia-related thorax CT characteristics. METHODS: This is a retrospective study conducted between March 25, 2020 and April 25, 2020. The anamnesis and medical files of 155 patients who applied to our outpatient COVID-19 clinic were evaluated. Patients with positive PCR tests for COVID-19 who were aged between 18-72 years were divided into groups according to the presence of otolaryngological symptoms. The differences between the two groups were examined. RESULTS: Of the 155 patients, 89 (57.4%) had otolaryngological symptoms. The mean age of the patients was 36.3 ± 8.1 years. Ninety-one (58.7%) patients were female, and 64 (42.2%) were male. Fifty-eight (37.4%) patients had received a clinical diagnosis of viral pneumonia with ground glass findings in tomography. The frequency of otolaryngological symptoms was higher in females than males (p: 0.029). The otolaryngological symptoms were also observed to be more frequent in the 18-30 age group (p: 0.013) compared to other age groups. CONCLUSIONS: Tinnitus, gingivitis, sudden hearing loss, Bell's palsy, and hoarseness can be seen in COVID-19, albeit rarely. Revealing the otolaryngological symptoms of COVID-19, and obtaining more information about the extent of disease will be useful in managing patients and their complaints associated with otolaryngology.

The Association Between Glycolyzed Hemoglobin A1c and Hearing Loss in Diabetic Patients.

Purpose Our study aimed to determine the correlation between glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and the audiometric parameters in diabetic patients. Methods We included 724 patients (376 male, 348 female) in our outpatient clinic and created four groups by reference to the HbA1c values. The first group was 192 patients with an HbA1c value < 4.5, 176 patients with an HbA1c value between 4.5 - 5 as Group 2, 177 patients with an HbA1c value between 5 - 6 as Group 3, and 179 patients that had an HbA1c value greater than 6 as Group 4. The correlations between HbA1c values and median pure tone thresholds at 250, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000, and 8,000 Hz, the speech recognition thresholds, and the speech discrimination scores were compared. Results The median speech recognition thresholds, speech discrimination scores, and the median pure-tone thresholds at 250, 500, 1,000, 2,000, 4,000, and 8,000 MHz in the left ear significantly differed in the fourth group (p < 0.001). Pure-tone thresholds at 500 Hz, 4,000 Hz, speech discrimination scores, and recognition thresholds in the right ear had a significant positive correlation in the fourth group (p < 0.001). Conclusion According to HbA1c levels, the severity of diabetes can affect high to all frequencies of hearing functions negatively. The follow-up of patients with higher levels of HbA1c should undergo audiological tests more regularly.

Comparison of Inferior Turbinate and Uncinate Process Angulation with Normal Population in Patients with Septal Spur.

The presence of septal spur may cause various pathologies by affecting the development of the inferior turbinate, osteomeatal unit and uncinate process. We aimed to compare the changes of the angle with inferior turbinate and the maxillary medial wall of the uncinate process in patients with septal spur by normal population. In the study, 138 patients with septal spur and unilateral septum deviation and 83 patients without septum deviation were evaluated retrospectively. The angles of the inferior turbinate and the uncinate process with the medial wall of the maxilla were measured at the ostemaetal unit level. The changes of the inferior turbinate and the uncinate process with the maxilla medial wall compared to the opposite side of the deviated side and the normal population were compared. Angle of the inferior turbinate with the medial wall of the maxilla is significantly smaller in the side with septum deviation to the side without septum deviation and normal population and significantly large in the side without septum deviation to normal population. Angle of the uncinate process with the medial wall of the maxilla is significantly large in the side with septum deviation to the side without septum deviation and normal population and significantly smaller in the side without septum deviation to normal population. Presence of septum base crest are thought to cause structural changes at the inferior turbinate and the uncinate process. We recommend to break the inferior turbinate at the concave side in patients with basal crest.