The 120th American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Annual Meeting & OTO EXPO
The annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery was held from Sept. 18 to 21 in San Diego and attracted more than 8,000 participants from around the world, including otolaryngologists, other medical experts, allied health professionals, and administrators. Presentations focused on the latest advances in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the ears, nose, throat, and related structures of the head and neck.
In one study, Shivani Shah, M.D., of Penn State Health in Hershey, and colleagues found that patients with primary hyperparathyroidism who underwent parathyroidectomy demonstrated improvement in neurocognitive function one week post-surgery.
“Previous studies have shown that patients with primary hyperparathyroidism also frequently have ‘subtle’ symptoms, including neurocognitive deficits (memory loss, decrease in attention, concentration, mood changes, and decreased appetite),” Shah said. “The treatment for primary hyperparathyroidism is primarily surgery, and previous studies two and three months after surgery have also shown that neurocognitive improvements improve with surgery.”
The investigators noted that patients reported subjective improvements much earlier than two or three months after surgery. “We hypothesized that these improvements may be detectable on testing early after surgery,” Shah said. “Our study looked at a much earlier time point — one week after surgery. We tested patients both preoperatively and postoperatively with validated tests for neurocognitive performance.”
The investigators found that objective improvements in neurocognitive function (attention, concentration, and immediate and delayed memory) can be detected as early as one week after parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism. “Patients can be counseled that neurocognitive improvements after parathyroidectomy for primary hyperparathyroidism may be noticeable as early as one week after surgery,” Shah added.
In patients with nasal valve collapse, Marion San Nicoló, M.D., of the Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich, and colleagues evaluated the safety and efficacy of a novel, absorbable nasal valve implant (LATERA) to support collapsed valves. The investigators found that the absorbable implant significantly reduced nasal obstruction symptoms over 12 months of follow-up.
“The new implant technology, a minimally invasive device that provides support to upper/lower lateral cartilage, is safe and shows good results, with 76 percent of study participants responding at 12 months. The implant anchors on the maxilla bone, providing cantilever support of the lateral cartilage. Also, our study showed no negative cosmetic changes in our patients,” San Nicoló said. “Until now, treatment of nasal valve collapse was limited to either conservative treatment options such as strips or rhinologics or had to be addressed by a functional rhinoplasty, which is invasive and might alter the patient’s appearance. With this new device, lateral wall insufficiency can be addressed in a minimally invasive way, in the office or the operating room.”
San Nicoló disclosed financial ties to Spirox, the manufacturer of LATERA.
In another study, Swati Agrawal, M.B.B.S., and Nishi Sharma, M.B.B.S., of PGIMER and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi, evaluated the effect of hyperbaric oxygen therapy on sudden sensorineural hearing loss and use of this modality as an adjunctive treatment for the disorder.
“The key conclusion is that hyperbaric oxygen therapy can and should be used as an adjunctive treatment modality for sudden sensorineural hearing loss, considering that it is a safe and benign intervention and awareness is gradually increasing,” Agrawal said. “This would definitely have an impact on clinical practice as it adds to the knowledge regarding the use of this modality and reaffirms the already existing literature.”
AAO: Nasal Oxytocin Shows Immediate Benefit in Tinnitus
FRIDAY, Sept. 23, 2016 (HealthDay News) — Patients with tinnitus may find some immediate relief with nasally-administered oxytocin, according to a study presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, held from Sept. 18 to 21 in San Diego.
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