Videofluoroscopy Versus Nasopharyngoscopy of Lateral Pharyngeal Wall Movement for Assessment of Velopharyngeal Insufficiency.

BACKGROUND: Competent speech requires closure of the velopharyngeal sphincter by dynamic apposition of the velum and posterior and lateral pharyngeal walls. An accurate estimation of lateral pharyngeal wall motion is an important determinant in the planning and the outcome of any operation to correct velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI). The purpose was to compare the assessment of lateral pharyngeal wall movement by videofluoroscopy (VP) versus nasopharyngoscopy (NP). METHODS: The authors retrospectively reviewed the charts of 269 consecutive patients in our cleft lip/palate clinic from 1982 to 2008 and culled those treated with a pharyngeal flap for VPI. The authors included patients who were evaluated preoperatively by both VP and NP, and had studies of suitable quality. Percentage of lateral pharyngeal wall motion was estimated with each technique and compared for each patient. RESULTS: The authors identified 25 patients who underwent both VP and NP at the same median age (4.7 years). The estimated percentage of lateral pharyngeal wall motion between the 2 techniques was significantly different ( P <0.001). Average lateral pharyngeal wall motion was estimated to be 59±25% (range: 5%-90%) by VP and only 40%±25% (range: 0%-95%) during NP. CONCLUSIONS: VP and NP are complementary, but assessment of lateral pharyngeal wall motion can vary between the 2 methods. The surgeon should be aware of the difference in estimated lateral pharyngeal wall movement when planning a procedure to correct VPI.

Prenatal Diagnosis of Craniosynostosis Using Ultrasound.

BACKGROUND: Craniosynostosis is typically diagnosed postnatally. Prenatal diagnosis would allow for improved parental counseling and facilitate timely intervention. Our purpose was to determine whether prenatal ultrasound can be used to diagnose nonsyndromic craniosynostosis. METHODS: The authors reviewed 22 prenatal ultrasounds of infants known to have nonsyndromic craniosynostosis and 22 age-matched controls. Cross-sectional images at the plane used to measure biparietal diameter were selected and cranial shape of each participant was parameterized and used to discriminate affected patients from controls. The results from quantitative shape analysis were compared with results from a blinded visual inspection alone. RESULTS: Among the 22 patients, the most common diagnosis was sagittal synostosis ( n = 11), followed by metopic synostosis ( n = 6). The average gestational age at time of ultrasound of controls and synostotic patients was 26 weeks and 6.8 days at the junction of the second and third trimesters. The controls and synostotic cases segregated into statistically different populations by their shape profiles ( p < 0.001). An automatic shape classifier using leave-one-out cross-validation correctly classified the 44 images as normal versus synostotic 85 percent of the time (sensitivity, 82 percent; specificity, 87 percent). Cephalic index was a poor indicator of sagittal synostosis (45 percent sensitivity). Visual inspection alone demonstrated only a fair level of accuracy (40 to 50 percent agreement) in identifying cases of synostosis (kappa, 0.09 to 0.23). CONCLUSIONS: Craniosynostosis can be identified on prenatal ultrasound with good sensitivity using formal shape analysis. Cephalic index and visual inspection alone performed poorly. CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Diagnostic, II.