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OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of neutrophil/lymphocyte (N/L) and platelet/lymphocyte (P/L) ratios in sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) and investigate the effect of combined corticosteroid medical treatment and/or hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) therapy on these values. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, patients with SSHL at our tertiary center were examined retrospectively. A total of 60 patients with SSNHL and 30 healthy individuals as the control group were included. The patient and control groups were compared in terms of N/L and P/L rates. Furthermore, 60 patients were divided into 2 equal groups (n=30) on the basis of whether they received HBO in addition to combined corticosteroid treatment. RESULTS: The N/L and P/L rates were significantly higher in the patient groups than in the control group at the time of diagnosis and significantly decreased after treatment in the patient groups (p<0.05). It was observed that HBO therapy lowered the N/L and P/L rates more than the HBO-free group, but the statistically significant decrease was only in N/L ratio (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: The N/L and P/L rates were higher in the patient groups than in the control group, and there was also a significant decrease in the 2 values after treatment. This was an important finding showing that SSNHL has a possible underlying inflammatory and vascular (ischemic) condition. We also found that the higher the P/L ratio, the lower the recovery rate from hearing loss. This finding suggests that the P/L ratio can be an important prognostic indicator in patients with SSNHL.

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OBJECTIVE: The goal of the study was to verify the efficacy and safety of topical medical treatment in idiopathic recurrent pediatric epistaxis patients by intranasal usage of both an antimicrobial and a moisturizing agent as a first-step management modality. METHOD: Sixty-seven out of 326 pediatric patients with idiopathic recurrent epistaxis selected on a chart review of follow-up were enrolled in the study. The study was designed as an analysis of two groups: one group included 35 individuals (52.2% of the total cohort) having a hyperemic nasal mucosa and the second group included 32 individuals (47.8% of the total cohort) having a hypervascular nasal mucosa on physical examination before treatment. RESULTS: The study was performed with a total of 67 children (age range 3-17 years) including 36 males (53.7% of total cohort) and 31 females (46.3% of total cohort). The mean age was 9.78±4.09 years. There was not any statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of age, duration of follow-up and recurrence time of epistaxis (p>0.05). Recurrence of epistaxis was seen in 22.9% (8/35) of hyperemic nasal mucosa group and in 34.4% (11/32) of hypervascular nasal mucosa group (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: We advise the use of both an intranasal antimicrobial ointment and a mucosal moisturizing gel as an effective, noninvasive and easily applicable medical treatment option for pediatric patients with idiopathic recurrent epistaxis before more invasive methods of epistaxis control.

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OBJECTIVES: This study aims to compare the effects of radiofrequency ablation and microdebrider reduction in lower turbinate surgery on nasal physiology. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between January 2009 and March 2010, 40 patients with the complaint of nasal obstruction, who were diagnosed with lower turbinate hypertrophy, were randomly assigned into two groups to undergo either radiofrequency (group 1, n=20) or microdebrider (group 2, n=20) treatments. Nasal obstruction, the grade of turbinate hypertrophy and other symptoms were evaluated with subjective nasal obstruction scale and anterior rhinoscopy before the operation, and three days, seven days, four weeks, and eight weeks after the surgical intervention. RESULTS: The patients in group 2 had a significantly greater symptomatic improvement based on subjective nasal obstruction scale (SNOS) scores than the patients in group 1 (p<0.01). Acoustic rhinometry (ARM) measurements without decongestant application showed significant increase in postoperative MCA2 (Minimum Cross-sectional Area/cm2 2) and Vol 2 (Volume/cm3 2) (p<0.01), while there was no significant change in MCA1 (Minimum Cross-sectional Area/cm2 1) and Vol 1 (Volume/cm3 1). There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups with respect to ARM and anterior rhinoscopy (AnR) parameters (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Based on these results, both radiofrequency ablation and microdebrider reduction may be considered as minimally invasive, straightforward, and reliable methods that provide sufficient airway passage without disruption of the nasal physiology.

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External laryngeal trauma is a relatively rare-encountered and sometimes life-threatening emergency condition. Recognition of laryngeal injury related to either blunt or penetrating trauma is important for both initial preservation of life as well as long-term airway and vocal function. Treatment options include medical management with observation and open surgical treatment with or without tracheotomy. We, herein, describe a 23-year-old male case who sustained external penetrating trauma to lateral aspect of neck. The etiology, clinical manifestations, investigation modalities and management of penetrating neck trauma were discussed in the light of the literature data.

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Esophageal and laryngeal injuries due to ballistic injuries are seldom encountered. Ballistic external neck traumas generally result in death. Incidence of external penetrant neck injuries may vary between 1/5000-137000 patients among emergency service referrals. Vascular injuries, esophagus-hypopharynx perforations, laryngotracheal injuries, bony fractures, and segmentations may be encountered in external neck traumas. Here we report a 27-year-old male patient who was referred to our emergency department and presented with hyoid bone fracture, multiple mandibular fractures, and hypopharynx perforation due to a ballistic external neck injury.

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The objective of the prospective study is to examine the laryngeal changes by laryngeal videostroboscopy and electromyography (EMG) regarding new-onset dysphonia in asthmatic patients taking inhaled corticosteroids (ICS). Laryngeal changes and electrophysiological status of the laryngeal muscles were evaluated by these methods in 12 patients both at the time of presentation of dysphonia and after cessation of therapy. Laryngeal changes of our patients were mucosal edema, erythema, thickening, adduction deficit, nodule and irregularity in videostroboscopy. Significant correlations were found between laryngeal pathology and dosage and duration of ICS therapy. We detected myopathy by EMG in most of the patients. Also, EMG revealed that cricothyroid muscle was much more affected than thyroarytenoid muscle. In conclusion, we consider that steroid myopathy or mucosal inflammatory theory alone is not sufficient to explain the etiopathogenesis of dysphonia in asthmatic patients taking ICS. The laryngeal mucosal changes were detected by laryngeal videostroboscopic examination in some asthmatic patients, with dysphonia using ICS, and/or laryngeal myopathy was found by laryngeal EMG in some of them in this study. Thus, various factors may have role simultaneously in the occurrence of dysphonia.

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Isolated sphenoiditis (IS) is a relatively rare clinical entity which might present with serious complications. The clinical records of ten patients with IS were reviewed. The presenting symptoms, the findings, and the treatments given were noted. Eight patients were female and two were male, and their age varied between 9 and 65 years (mean 31 years). The main presenting symptom was headache in five patients, diplopia in four patients, and postnasal drainage in one patient. The duration of the symptoms ranged between 48 h and 1 year. The diagnosis was accomplished by history, nasal endoscopy and radiological examination (computed tomography and/or magnetic resonance imaging). Two patients had fungus ball. One patient was a scuba diver as a possible predisposing factor. All of the patients underwent medical treatment consisting of intravenous antibiotics or oral antibiotics, and endoscopic sinusotomy was performed in nine patients additionally. Complete resolution was obtained for all patients except one who had diplopia for one year. IS may present with headache and orbital symptoms. Timely diagnosis and treatment are substantial in order to avoid serious complications, and to obtain a complete recovery. Medical treatment does not avoid surgery in majority of cases. Surgery is indicated from the very beginning specifically for the cases starting with diplopia which might be suggestive of a progression of the infection. Currently the most frequently used approach is endoscopic transnasal sphenoidotomy. This technique seems to be effective and less traumatic compared to other approaches.

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