Assessment the long-term effects of septoplasty surgery on olfactory function.

OBJECTIVES: This research aimed to evaluate pre-operatively and post-operatively the olfactory function of patients who had undergone surgery in our clinic for chronic nasal blockage via the Connecticut Chemosensory Clinical Research Center (CCCRC) smell test. METHOD: Thirty-seven patients (24 females, 13 males) were enrolled in this study. All had undergone surgery in our clinic due to chronic nasal blockage (not for smell dysfunction), having been diagnosed with septal deviation in conjunction with concha bullosa and/or inferior turbinate hypertrophy. This is a prospective study without a control group. The mean age was 33.74 ± 8.98 (range =19-54). All of the operations were performed under general anesthesia. CCCRC smell tests were performed on every patient before the operation and at post-operative 1st week, 6th week, 6th month, and 1st year. RESULTS: In this study, we found that septoplasty, in conjunction with middle concha surgery and/or inferior concha radiofrequency, did not affect the olfactory function negatively. CONCLUSION: Although nasal surgery has the potential to affect the smell function negatively, it was found that olfactory function was not affected after the surgery during a considerably long follow-up period. Moreover, an improvement in smell function was detected at post-operative 6th month and 1st year.

What is the Role of Diffusion Weigh Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Evaluation of Thyroid Nodules?

This study aimed to compare ultrasonography (US), contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CCT) of the neck, and diffusion-weigh magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) in differentiating between benign and malignant nodules while approaching to thyroid nodules, and to estimate sensitivity and specificity of these methods. On thyroid US, echogenicity, calcification, presence/absence of halo, nodule size being larger/smaller than 20 mm, and nodule nature (cystic/solid nature) were evaluated. Findings on CCT of the neck were grouped according to the heterogeneity/homogeneity, presence/absence of enhancement, and intensity. On DW-MRI, diffusion restriction was evaluated. The findings of these tests were compared with postoperative histopathological findings, and specificity and sensitivity of the tests in differentiating malignant and benign nodules were assessed. The study included 38 patients (34 females, 4 males). The sensitivity and specificity of DW-MRI were 20 and 75 %, respectively. Presence of a >20 mm nodule in thyroid US had the highest sensitivity, whereas thyroid fine-needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) had the highest specificity in detecting malignancy. The sensitivities and specificities of CCT of the neck and DW-MRI appeared relatively low. Evaluation of thyroid US findings together with thyroid FNAB findings provided high specificity and sensitivity and yielded better results than findings of CCT of the neck and DW-MRI.

Bilateral lower cervical bifurcation of the common carotid artery.

Lower cervical bifurcation of cervical common carotid artery (CCA) is a very rarely encountered anatomic variation. Knowing the normal vascular anatomy and also its anomalies is important in preventing the vascular complications. Ill-defined vascular anomalies may lead to massive hemorrhage and eventually death during head and neck surgery. Imaging of the neck by magnetic resonance Imaging (MRI), CT, or angiography is helpful for diagnosis. We present a 62-year-old male patient diagnosed with laryngeal carcinoma who had been treated. His MRI revealed bilateral low-level bifurcation of the cervical common carotid arteries as well as tumor localization and its boundaries. Total laryngectomy and right selective neck dissection was performed to the patient with the diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx. During the neck dissection, carotid bifurcation was detected in common border of Level 3 and Level 4 of the neck.