International consensus recommendations on face transplantation: A 2-step Delphi study.

Face transplantation is a viable reconstructive approach for severe craniofacial defects. Despite the evolution witnessed in the field, ethical aspects, clinical and psychosocial implications, public perception, and economic sustainability remain the subject of debate and unanswered questions. Furthermore, poor data reporting and sharing, the absence of standardized metrics for outcome evaluation, and the lack of consensus definitions of success and failure have hampered the development of a "transplantation culture" on a global scale. We completed a 2-round online modified Delphi process with 35 international face transplant stakeholders, including surgeons, clinicians, psychologists, psychiatrists, ethicists, policymakers, and researchers, with a representation of 10 of the 19 face transplant teams that had already performed the procedure and 73% of face transplants. Themes addressed included patient assessment and selection, indications, social support networks, clinical framework, surgical considerations, data on patient progress and outcomes, definitions of success and failure, public image and perception, and financial sustainability. The presented recommendations are the product of a shared commitment of face transplant teams to foster the development of face transplantation and are aimed at providing a gold standard of practice and policy.

Great auricular nerve preservation during parotidectomy for benign tumors.

The great auricular nerve, the largest sensory branch of the cervical plexus, arises from the third cervical nerve (C3) with irregular contribution from the C2. The first part of its course is deep to the sternocleidomastoid muscle. In few years, many experiences by different authors concerning the issue of great auricular nerve integrity during parotidectomy were published in the literature. The aims of our article were to report our experience with 78 consecutive patients who underwent standard superficial, subtotal, or total parotidectomy for benign tumors and to illustrate postsurgical findings regarding the sensibility of the pinna and mandibular angle as subjectively reported in the early postsurgical period and after 3, 6, and 12 months from surgery.

Use of scopolamine patches in patients treated with parotidectomy.

The antimuscarinic effect of scopolamine causes a reduction of salivary secretion, so it can be used successfully in postoperative parotid surgery. The aim of this article was to demonstrate the efficiency of postoperative use of scopolamine transdermal patch in reduction of complications due to the presence of saliva in the surgical spaces.

The mushroom-shaped anterolateral thigh perforator flap for subtotal tongue reconstruction.

BACKGROUND: Reconstruction of a functional tongue with proper motility and sensation after subtotal resection is a demanding procedure. The authors describe the reinnervated mushroom-shaped anterolateral thigh perforator flap for subtotal tongue reconstruction. METHODS: Thirteen patients (mean age, 54.8 years; range, 49 to 71 years) diagnosed with T3 and T4 squamous cell carcinomas were allocated prospectively to anterior total mobile (n = 7) or subtotal tongue resection (n = 6). All patients received the mushroom-shaped anterolateral thigh perforator flap. A Likert scale ranging from 1 to 4 was used to assess speech intelligibility, swallowing function, and cosmetic results. Epicritic and proprioceptive sensitivity testing was performed with the Pressure-Specified Sensory Device on the tip of the tongue preoperatively, on the neotongue at the donor site preoperatively, and at the recipient site 12 months postoperatively; protopathic thermoreceptor and nociceptors were clinically investigated. Outcomes were analyzed, and values of p < 0.05 were considered significant. RESULTS: All flaps healed uneventfully (mean follow-up, 18 months). Six patients (46.2 percent) recovered a nearly natural deglutition, whereas seven (53.8 percent) had mild impairment (p = 0.274). Normal intelligible speech was achieved in seven cases (53.8 percent), and acceptable intelligible speech was achieved in six (46.2 percent) (p = 0.286). Aesthetic results were excellent in eight patients (61.5 percent) and good in five (38.5 percent) (p = 0.592). All patients recovered epicritic, proprioceptive, and protopathic sensitivity; cortical upgrading phenomena of the recipient nerve were observed. CONCLUSION: The reinnervated mushroom-shaped anterolateral thigh perforator flap was found to be an innovative and effective option for subtotal tongue reconstruction.

Giant benign neoplasm of lateral neck.

Branchial cleft anomalies are the second most common congenital head and neck lesions to arise in the neck.Second branchial cleft cyst typically presents as a nontender, painless, smooth, and round neck mass located along the upper third of the anterior border of the sternocleidomastoid muscle which may acutely increase in size after an upper respiratory infection.The aim of this article was to illustrate a case of a giant second branchial cyst 8 cm in diameter that was surgically treated at the Department of Maxillo-Facial Surgery of Sant'Andrea Hospital in Rome.

Recurrent pleomorphic adenoma of the parotid gland: role of neutron radiation therapy.

Recurrent pleomorphic adenoma (RPA) of the parotid gland represents a challenging task for maxillofacial surgeons. The role of radiotherapy in the treatment of RPA of the parotid gland has been studied in previous experiences, and its use has been considered questionable. The aims of our article were to analyze and illustrate a case of RPA, initially treated with enucleations at another institution, showing a multinodular pattern with positivity for S-100 protein and cytokeratin, managed with conservative parotidectomy and neutron radiotherapy.

Major facial trauma after helicopter landing.

Injuries in civil aviation can occur as a consequence of work-related accidents happening in airport. The ground crew can sustain slips, trips, falls, and machinery accidents. Most such accidents are observed when aircraft is departing. This clinical report describes a case of an airport ground assistant severely injured by a helicopter after the strike with a main rotor blade that was slowing after that the craft was landed and the engine was stopped, and reports surgical emergency treatment of life-threatening facial lesions.

Treatment of recurrent mandibular ameloblastoma with segmental resection and revascularized fibula free flap.

The adamantinoma is characterized by a high rate of local recurrence. Because of this peculiarity, radical treatment is generally preferred than conservative surgery. Resection with free margins is associated with lower risk of recurrence but is not recurrence free; thus, the importance of long and scrupulous follow-up is evident. The aim of this study was to present a patient with recurrent mandibular adamantinoma after box resection with safety margins of 1 cm that has necessitated of a segmental resection with 1-step reconstruction with revascularized fibula free flap.

Surgical treatment of an extraparotid pleomorphic adenoma of minor salivary glands of the cheek.

Only few cases of extraparotid localizations of pleomorphic adenoma (PA) were reported in literature: at the lips, tonsils of the tongue, the occipital area and of the nasal septum, retropharyngeal area, temporal bone, and the thyroglossal and pituitary ducts.The finding of a PA in the minor salivary glands of the cheek was described only in 2 cases during the last 24 years and represented an exceptional finding.The aim of this article was to illustrate a case of extraparotid PA developing at the salivary glands of cheek, a short distance from Stensen duct, and to report surgical strategy.

Treatment of oligodontia with endo-osseous fixtures: experience in eight consecutive patients at the end of dental growth.

Clinical manifestations of oligodontia consist in agenesia of multiple teeth eventually with deciduous retained teeth, atrophy of alveolar ridge, aberrations of teeth dimension, and shape, with consequent aesthetic and functional defects. The first choice treatment is based on a team collaboration of maxillo-facial surgeon, orthodontist, and prosthodontist, and is conditioned by various clinical parameters as number and site of lacking teeth, age and dental development of patients, eventual alveolar ridge atrophy. Treatment planning should be individualized for each patient. In our experience, based on 8 consecutive patients at the end of dental growth affected by oligodontia, endo-osseous fixtures positioning was carried out in consideration of long-lasting stability and optimal aesthetical characteristics. In 5 patients rehabilitative preprosthetic surgical procedures were performed, consisting in 2 sinus lift with immediate positioning of 3 fixtures in both cases, 4 heterologous bone graft in postextractive sites with retained ankylotic deciduous teeth and 1 positioning of reabsorbable biomembrane. A temporary removable denture was positioned immediately after surgery in order to obtain a prompt aesthetical and psychosocial restore. Osseointegration ratio as observed at 8.5 years follow-up was analyzed according to surgical variables and differences in prosthetic rehabilitation (fixtures supporting single crown versus multiple crowns). Successful osteointegration was observed at 8.5 years mean follow-up in 58 fixtures, corresponding to a 96.6% ratio. Failure of integration was encountered in fixtures immediately positioned in postextractive sites having a mild grade of bone atrophy, supporting single crown. A rate of success of 100% was observed in cases of immediate or delayed positioning in postextractive or traditional sites.Fixtures positioning in patients affected by isolated oligodontia, without malformative syndromes, and at the end of dental development, is subject to the same recommendations for patients with lacking permanent teeth not caused by agenesia.

Intracellular and extracellular tumor pH measurement in a series of patients with oral cancer.

Reversed pH gradient is an intrinsic feature of tumor phenotype resulting from an upregulation of glycolysis. This is crucial for tumor cell proliferation, invasion, metastasis, drug resistance, and apoptosis. Comprehension of mechanisms of pH regulation in tumors is of paramount importance for therapeutic implications. This is a preliminary report of a larger prospective study dedicated to the measurements of neutral or slightly alkaline pH/extracellular pH (pHi/pHe) in human patients affected by tumors of the head and neck. During surgery, four specimens were obtained from six patients with cancer: two from the tumor site and two from contralateral areas or sane areas near the tumor. pHe and pHi were measured and compared within normal and neoplastic tissues. Our data indicate that human spontaneous tumors show similar reversed gradients as observed in previous analysis on animal tumor models and cell lines.

Warthin's tumor of the hard palate.

Warthin's Tumor (WT) or papillary cystadenoma lymphomatosum is typically located in parotid gland. Extraparotid localization of WTs (EPWT) was rarely described in ectopic salivary tissue in the latero-cervical and para-parotid lymph nodes. Localization in the hard palate is exceptional. This paper describes pre-surgical diagnostic work up and surgical management of a solitary WT localized in the hard palate as found in a 27-year-old Caucasian woman. With consideration of uncertain pre-surgical diagnosis obtained with FNAC, intraoperative histologic examination of frozen sections was planned. Conservative surgical approach was performed. After WT was diagnosed with histology, a local bone curettage was made. Clinical and radiographic follow-up at 12th month was negative for relapse.