Design and clinical validation of a 3D-printed nasopharyngeal swab for COVID-19 testing

We describe the development and validation of a novel 3D-printed nasopharyngeal swab for the identification of SARS-CoV-2. We subjected the novel swab to mechanical and fluid absorption testing ex-vivo, and confirmed its ability to retain and release murine coronavirus and SARS-CoV-2. Compared to the Copan FLOQSwab, the novel swab displayed excellent correlation of RT-PCR cycle threshold values on paired clinical testing in COVID-19 patients, at r = 0.918 and 0.943 for the SARS-CoV-2 ORF1/a and sarbecovirus E-gene respectively. Overall positive and negative percent agreement was 90.6% and 100% respectively on a dual-assay RT-PCR platform, with discordant samples observed only at high cycle thresholds. When carefully designed and tested, 3D-printed swabs are a viable alternative to traditional swabs and will help mitigate strained resources in the escalating COVID-19 pandemic.

Prosthodontic management of edentulous patient with limited oral access using implant-supported prostheses: a clinical report.

Limited oral access presents a unique challenge to prosthodontic treatment. An edentulous patient who developed microstomia after a maxillary lip resection is presented. The clinical procedure and the rationale for the treatment approach using implanted-supported overdentures are discussed.

Overexpression of cyclooxygenase-2 in nasopharyngeal carcinoma and association with epidermal growth factor receptor expression.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the association between cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) expression with epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and latent membrane protein 1 (LMP-1) expression and with COX-2 promoter methylation status in primary nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) tumors and to determine COX-2 promoter methylation status in NPC cell lines. DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: Patients with NPC were referred to the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery for treatment. PATIENTS: Formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded NPC specimens from 42 patients were obtained. INTERVENTIONS: Immunohistochemical expression of COX-2, EGFR, VEGF, iNOS, and LMP-1 was performed in 42 NPC samples. COX-2 promoter methylation status was studied in 20 separate specimens and in 4 NPC cell lines. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: (1) COX-2, EGFR, VEGF, iNOS, and LMP-1 expression; and (2) COX-2 promotor methylation status. RESULTS: COX-2 was overexpressed in 79% of NPC specimens and was associated with EGFR status (P = .03) but not with LMP-1 or iNOS. In primary NPC tissue, methylation of the COX-2 promoter was seen in 4 of 7 COX-2-negative and 1 of 13 COX-2-positive immunohistochemical cases. COX-2 promoter methylation was found in the CNE-1 cell line. CONCLUSIONS: Nasopharyngeal cancer may be a useful target for selective COX-2 inhibition. The absence of promoter methylation may be a necessary component of COX-2 overexpression, and promoter methylation may be one of the mechanisms that regulate COX-2 expression.