Neck failure following pathologically node-negative neck dissection (pN0) in oral squamous cell carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Due to the risk of occult cervical metastasis, elective neck dissection (END) is recommended in the management of patients with early oral cavity squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) and a clinically node-negative (cN0) neck. This paper presents a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that recorded isolated regional recurrence (RR) in the pathologically node-negative neck dissection (pN0) neck following END in order to quantify the failure rate. Pubmed and Ovid databases were systematically searched for relevant articles published between January 2009 and January 2019. Studies reporting RR following END in patients with OSCC who had no pathological evidence of lymph node metastasis were eligible for inclusion in this meta-analysis. In addition, a selection of large head and neck units were invited to submit unpublished data. Search criteria produced a list of 5448 papers, of which 18 studies met the inclusion criteria. Three institutions contributed unpublished data. This included a total of 4824 patients with median follow-up of 34 months (2.8 years). Eight datasets included patients staged T1-T4 with RR 17.3% (469/2711), 13 datasets included patients staged T1-T2 with RR 7.5% (158/2113). Overall across all 21 studies, isolated neck recurrence was identified in 627 cases giving a RR of 13.0% (627/4824) on meta-analysis. Understanding the therapeutic effectiveness of END provides context for evaluation of clinical management of the cN0 in these patients. A pathologically negative neck does not guarantee against future recurrence.

[Development of a risk map in an oral and maxillofacial surgical unit]. / Desarrollo de un mapa de riesgos en una unidad de cirugía oral y maxilofacial.

INTRODUCTION: the main aim of this study was to develop and implement a risk map in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Service of the University Hospital «Virgen de las Nieves¼ of Granada to minimize the incidence of adverse effects (AE). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Longitudinal, prospective study carried out in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Service of the Hospital Universitario Virgen de las Nieves of Granada, from June 2017 to May 2018, through the methodology of «Analysis and Failure Mode Effect¼. Management of the different AE was addressed. The following phases were considered as it follows: identification of the problem, identification of AE for within the practice of the oral and maxillofacial surgery that represents a problem in the assistive safety, creation of an interdisciplinary working group, analysis of the current situation in patient safety and risk management using 2analysis tools, SWOT and PITELO, preparation of the patient care process, development of a catalog of AE and preparation of a risk map. RESULTS: A total of 33 AE were identified. The risk map showed a higher incidence of AE in the Surgical Area (22) compared to the areas of Outpatient Clinic and Hospital Discharge (6). A total of 10 critical AE were identified. CONCLUSIONS: The elaboration of a risk map allowed to determine the process of the oral and maxillofacial surgical patient, and to elaborate a catalog of AE.

[Management of adverse events in an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit]. / Gestión de eventos adversos en un Servicio de Cirugía oral y Maxilofacial.

INTRODUCTION: Patient safety in oral and maxillofacial surgery is oriented towards providing patient care by means of adequate risk management that minimises adverse events and fosters a culture of safe clinical practices as the fundamental basis of quality health care. To implement preventive actions are implemented in order to improve patient safety and to reduce the incidence of adverse events, as well as to improve the quality of care. The aim of this report is to implement preventive measures in order to improve the health care of the patient in an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit by reducing the Adverse Events and proving good quality healthcare. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A longitudinal, prospective, single centre study was conducted using a methodology of analysis of modes of failure and effects of the management of potentially serious adverse events in the Oral and Maxillofacial surgical unit of the University Hospital of Granada (June-November 2017), as well as the preparation and implementation of a series of corrective measures. RESULTS: A total of 33 adverse events were recorded, with 10 of them considered as critical, distributed in different areas of care, and referred from Primary Health Care and from other hospitals. Seven preventive actions were implemented: information to the patient, training actions, improvements in the protocols and procedures, in the care process and clinical practice, as well as the need to set up an adequate checklist, and other miscellaneous. DISCUSSION: The implementation of preventive measures represent a notable advance in the prevention of harm to the patient and the organisation, involving healthcare staff in a safety culture oriented towards quality care.

Factores que influencian el retraso diagnóstico en el cáncer oral / Factors that influence the diagnostic delay of oral cancer

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Is submental flap safe for the oncological reconstruction of the oral cavity?

AIM: The reconstruction of oral defects after oncological surgery is not an easy task for head and neck surgeons. The main aim of this work is to evaluate the functionality, viability and safety of submental flap for oral reconstruction. MATERIALS AND METHOD: We analyzed the records of patients diagnosed with oral and oropharyngeal SCC and reconstructed with the use of submental flap in Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital of Granada (Spain) from 2014 and 2015. Nine patients were found. Specific features such as age, sites of occurrence, sex distribution, T stage at diagnosis, nodal involvement, functionality of reconstruction and local and regional failure were determined. RESULTS: The male/female ratio was 8:1. The average age of the patients was 59.6 years (range: 42-75). Tumor locations were base of the tongue (n2), lateral edge of the tongue (n4), floor of the mouth (n2) and buccal mucosa (n1). Six tumors were classified as a T2 tumor and 3 as T3. No major complications were evidenced during the immediate postoperative period. Moreover, all patients showed excellent tissue coverage with acceptable aesthetic and functional outcomes. However, 1 patient showed partial epithelial loss of the skin paleta. Finally, the recurrence rate of disease was 44,4%. Four of 9 patients experienced a local (1/9) or cervical relapse (3/9). DISCUSSION: Submental flap might offer great aesthetic and functional results in oral reconstruction. However, the recurrence rate of disease was too high in our sample. From our point of view, submental flap should be carefully indicated in oncological reconstruction, especially in case of suspicion of lymph node involvement at level Ib.

Oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma in young adults: A retrospective study in Granada University Hospital.

BACKGROUND: This study aims to evaluate and analyze the clinical features and outcomes of oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in patients < 45-years old in our center. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was conducted using the records of patients diagnosed with oral and oropharyngeal SCC between 1998 and 2011 in the University Hospital of Granada (Spain). The analysis identified 33 patients with oral and oropharyngeal SCC with an age of <45 years. Moreover, during the years studied, a further 472 patients were diagnosed with oral and oropharyngeal SCC in our center. Thus, 100 SCC patients with an age of >45 years were randomly selected from the same database. A retrospective analysis was conducted to determine specific features including sites of occurrence, risk factors, sex distribution, socio-economic status, T stage at diagnosis, nodal involvement, degree of tumor differentiation, locoregional failure and overall survival at 5 years was. Further, the results of both groups were compared. RESULTS: The male-female ratio was 1.2:1 in the group of young adults and 2.03:1 in the group of patients with an age of >45 years. No significant differences were found in terms of site, nodal involvement, locoregional failure, and overall survival. However, there were statistically significant differences between the two groups in terms of features such as risk factors, socio-economic status, T stage at diagnosis, and degree of tumor differentiation. The overall 5-year survival rate was 62% for patients >45 years old, whilst for the group of young adults this rate was 48.4% (p= 0.17). CONCLUSIONS: The poor association between the common risk factors and oral and oropharyngeal cancers in young adults suggests that other pathogenic mechanisms should be investigated. For young patients, the data show evidence of poorer outcomes in terms of overall survival (p=0.17), and locoregional failure (p=0.23). Nevertheless, the literature shows that the results in this field are particularly inconsistent, and further research is therefore needed to provide more in-depth knowledge of the disease in this age group.

Can cerebral vasoreactivity predict cerebral tolerance to carotid clamping during carotid endarterectomy?

Cerebral vasoreactivity (CVR) was evaluated as a preoperative test in predicting cerebral tolerance to carotid clamping.A consecutive series of 115 carotid endarterectomy (CEA) cases were studied. Before surgical operation CVR was evaluated, by measuring the mean velocity of the middle cerebral artery (mv-MCA) using transcranial Doppler (TCD) at the basal condition and 20 min after intravenous administration of acetazolamide (1 g). CEA was performed under general anesthesia. TCD was used during surgery to evaluate mv-MCA and to calculate mv-MCA clamping/mv-MCA pre-clamping x100 ratio (mv-MCA%), which was used as the parameter to validate CVR.CVR did not correlate with mv-MCA% (r=0.22). There was no significant difference (P=0.09) between mean values of the non shunted subgroup and the shunted one.CVR does not seem to be suitable for evaluating cerebral tolerance to carotid clamping.

Management of thoracic duct complex lesions (chylothorax): experience in 16 patients.

From our experience in 16 patients with persistent chylothorax from fistulas of the thoracic duct or its tributaries, we conclude that no standard treatment is uniformly successful and multimodality therapy should be considered. In selected patients, an anastomosis between ectatic lymphatics or hyperplastic lymph nodes and an adjacent vein may be attempted. Chylothorax from "leakage" of the thoracic duct or its tributaries is rare. Rupture of the thoracic duct superior to the sixth thoracic vertebrae generally results in a left-sided chylothorax; below that level, injury usually results in a right-sided chylothorax. The etiology is heterogeneous and includes blunt trauma, penetrating wounds (1), iatrogenic operative injury and lymphatic obstructions due to congenital abnormalities, inflammatory processes or neoplasms. Based on our experience in 16 patients with persistent chylothorax from thoracic duct complex lesions, we review the available treatment options.

[Prevention of vascular intimal hyperplasia in small caliber prostheses. Preliminary results]. / Controllo dell'iperplasia intimale in protesi di piccolo calibro. Risultati preliminari.

Intimal hyperplasia is one of the main risk factors for the patency of small diameter bypass grafts. The standard unfractioned heparin (UH) is able to control this phenomenon but the clinical use is not fit for long term treatment; on the other hand the antiplatelet drugs have an anti-thrombotic effect but they seem to be unable to control intimal hyperplasia. Low molecular weight heparins (LMWH) have an anti-thrombotic effect superimposable to that of UH with minimal side-effects and might inhibit intimal hyperplasia too. Based on these criteria, we carried out an experimental study on sheep with the aim of evaluating the efficacy of postoperative treatment with LMWH versus an anti-platelet drug in controlling intimal hyperplasia and growth of true endothelial cells in small prosthetic ePTFE grafts (4 mm) interposed in the carotid artery. At the operation, 30 sheep were randomly located in 3 groups: A = control group, no treatment; B = Ticlopidine hydrochloride 250 mg/bid by mouth for 4 weeks; C = LMWH 3.075 IU AXa (0.3 ml) sc preoperatively and then once a day for the same period. Complete thrombosis of the graft occurred in 7 sheep of group A, 5 in B and 2 partial in group C. The intimal hyperplasia was moderate-severe in group A, mild-moderate in group B and no-mild in group C. True endothelial cells were found mainly in the LMWH group; in the other groups and in other portions of the grafts the cellular coverage was accomplished almost completely by fibroblasts. The study is still in progress with 6 further sheep treated with LMWH.

[Spigelian hernia: its echotomographic diagnosis and surgical treatment]. / Ernia di Spigelio: diagnosi ecotomografica e trattamento chirurgico.

A case of Spigelian hernia recently observed gives the chance to review the anatomic features of this pathology. Spigelian hernia is seldom suspected, owing to its rare incidence. Currently, ultrasonography seems to resolve diagnostic problems with an accuracy of 86%. Consequent surgical treatment such as simple hernioplasty is easy, and the risk of recurrence is very small.

[Idiopathic and torsion-induced omental infarct: case reports and a review of the literature]. / Infarto omentale idiopatico e da torsione: contributo casistico e revisione della letteratura.

The authors review nosologic problems related to the infarction of the greater omentum on the ground of two cases (one idiopathic, the other by torsion) recently observed. Omental infarction, far from being a real diagnostic or surgical problem, is an unusual cause of acute abdomen; resection of the affected omentum is curative in 100% of cases.

[Primary tumors of the biliary hilum. Anatomical and therapeutic aspects]. / Tumori primitivi dell'ilo biliare. Aspetti anatomoclinici e terapeutici.

The validity of a selective surgical attitude towards primary tumours of the hepatic hilus after accurate pre- and intra-operative staging is stressed. Moreover the active management for both radical and palliative purposes is justified by some personal observations of the specific anatomoclinical behaviour of these tumours.