Ear and Face Mucormycosis; A Case Report.

Mucormycosis is an invasive fungal infection belonging to order of Mucorales which causes a high rate of mortality. This infection is mostly common in the immunosuppression conditions such as diabetes mellitus, chemotherapy, organ transplantation and hematologic malignancies.

Outcomes of Cochlear Implantation in Post-lingually Deaf Patients.

INTRODUCTION: Cochlear implantation has been mentioned as the most effective therapeutic intervention in deaf patients and especially those with post-lingual deafness. We aimed to assess hearing improvement of post-lingually deaf patients after cochlear implantation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: in this cross-sectional study all the post-lingually deaf patients who had undergone cochlear implantation (CI) surgery between December 2010 and February 2016 were assessed. Patients were recalled and after explaining the study process and signing an informed consent form, an audiometry was done by a single audiologist. In addition, demographic information, cause of hearing loss, age of onset, history of hearing aid use and surgical complications were recorded in a pre-designed checklist. RESULTS: Twenty-nine male and 21 female with a mean age of 22.52±19.45 years underwent analysis. Most of patients (80%) had progressed condition since childhood. Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) was the most prevalent (10%) known etiology of deafness followed by meningitis (6%), Trauma (2%) and ototoxic drugs (2%) in the remaining 20% of the patients. Patients had the highest mean (37.1±12.61 dB) in 4000 Hz frequency and the lowest mean of hearing threshold level (32.6±8.37 dB) was for 1000 Hz frequency. Mean hearing threshold level was significantly lower in patients with lower ages of cochlear implantation (p=0.435). Patients with higher ages of deafness onset showed lower degree of hearing improvement (p=0.462). CONCLUSION: The results of our study suggest that cochlear implantation significantly improves hearing function of post-lingual patients and can be considered as a certain cure for these patients in Iran.

Facial injuries in Iranian veterans during the Iraq-Iran war (1980-88): differences from recent conflicts.

Our aim was to identify the pattern and mechanism of facial injuries in Iranian veterans during the Iraq-Iran war and to assess the effectiveness of current protective equipment by retrospectively evaluating 100 Iranian veterans of that war. We randomly included veterans with injuries to various parts of the face, with or without injuries to other organs. None died. We recorded anatomical distribution, incidence, and mechanism of injury as well as injury scores using common references scales. Data are expressed as mean (SD) or number. Fragmentation injuries were the most common (n=40) followed by blast (n=37), shock wave (n=18), and gunshots (n=5). Thirty-five patients had mandibular fractures with a mean (SD) score of 3.7 (1.4). Fifteen patients had injuries to the upper face and 79 to the midface. Twenty-four patients had facial lacerations more than 10 cm long, with a mean facial injury score of 2.4 (2.0). Nineteen had ocular injuries with a mean (SD) ocular trauma score of 64.9 (12.9). Despite recent developments in protective equipment we have seen no significant reduction in the incidence of facial injuries in battle, which could indicate that we need better facial support equipment and more effective education in its use. However, using protective equipment such as goggles and a mandibular protector is highly recommended.