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Objective: To systematically identify the complications associated with balloon Eustachian tuboplasty and their frequency of occurrence. This study will also highlight the measures that can be employed to avoid these complications and perform this procedure more safely. Methods: Systematically reviewed relevant papers published until January 2023. Each reference was checked and evaluated for any potential manuscripts. There was no registered protocol; the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses was used. Results: Sixty-nine publications were found, from which 14 publications met our inclusion criteria: 2 randomised clinical trials, 5 retrospective studies, 2 systematic reviews, 2 case series and 3 case reports. Studies with balloon Eustachian tuboplasty procedure only were included, regardless of ethnicity, gender and age. All studies were excluded in which more than one procedure was performed. Conclusion: Balloon Eustachian tuboplasty is a relatively safe procedure with an overall complication risk of 1.66 per cent. Major complication rate was 0.43 per cent. Surgical emphysema was the most common, around 0.40 per cent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Silver nitrate can mimic foreign bodies or bony fragments on CT head imaging. Skull base bone erosion is the first radiologic confirmatory sign of its progression towards NOE.4 Interestingly, silver nitrate is very commonly used in these patients and often imaging follows. [Extracted from the article]

The phenomenon of accelerated tumor growth following surgery has been observed repeatedly and merits further study. Inflammatory breast carcinoma (IBC) is widely recognized as an extremely aggressive malignancy characterized by micrometastasis at the time of diagnosis, with one interesting subgroup defined as secondary IBC where pathologically identifiable IBC appears after surgical treatment of a primary non-inflammatory breast cancer. One possible mechanism can be related to the stimulation of dormant micrometastasis through local angiogenesis occurring as part of posttraumatic healing. In this report, we review cases of secondary IBC and others where localized trauma was followed by the appearance of IBC at the traumatized site that have been identified by our IBC Registry (IBCR) and hypothesize that angiogenesis appearing as part of the healing process could act as an accelerant to an otherwise latent breast malignancy. It is therefore possible that secondary IBC can be used as a model to support local angiogenesis as an important contributor to the development of an aggressive cancer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A transsphenoidal surgical (TSS) approach is used for pituitary gland surgery involving pituitary adenomas, as well as for the biopsy of various neurosurgical tumors. TSS, although a relatively safe procedure, can lead to complications like hypopituitarism, visual impairment, nasal septal perforation, diabetes insipidus, carotid artery injury, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks. Aseptic meningitis is also one of the complications of this procedure with an incidence of 1-2%, presenting with symptoms similar to bacterial meningitis, but with a low-grade fever of <102 F or even apyrexia. Here, we present a rare case of aseptic meningitis due to CSF leakage, presenting after 20 years of endoscopic surgery. A ventriculoperitoneal shunt was placed to stem the leak after two unsuccessful attempts of endonasal repair. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The acute host response to histoplasma capsulatum infection varies according to exposure and susceptibility. Late sequelae include calcifications in the lung, thoracic lymphatics, and spleen. Determinants of calcified granuloma formation are poorly studied and may differ from those affecting acute response. We examined the occupational associations and familial aggregation of radiographic calcified granulomatous disease to characterize the determinants of calcified granuloma formation. Methods: We analyzed prospectively collected cross-sectional data including computed tomograms from 872 adult members of the Old Order Amish of Lancaster County. Results: Granulomas were present in 71 % of participants. Granulomas were present in the lung of 57 % of participants, in the hilar or mediastinal lymph nodes of 55 % of participants, and in the spleen of 29 % of participants. No significant differences were observed in the presence of granulomas between men and women. Each year of age was associated with 4 % higher odds of splenic calcifications, and a primary occupation of farming was associated with an 84 % higher odds of splenic calcifications. A compelling pattern of familial aggregation was not observed. Conclusions: Calcified granulomatous disease does not appear to aggregate in families. Determinants influencing patterns of granulomatous disease include occupation, age, and geographic location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a solid tumor of the head and neck. Multimodal therapy is highly effective when NPC is detected early. However, due to the location of the tumor and the absence of clinical signs, early detection is difficult, making a biomarker for the early detection of NPC a priority. The dysregulation of small non-coding RNAs (miRNAs) during carcinogenesis is the focus of much current biomarker research. Herein, we examine several miRNA discovery methods using two sample matrices to identify circulating miRNAs (cmiRNAs) associated with NPC. Methods We tested two miRNA discovery workflows on two sample sources for miRNAs associated with NPC. In the first workflow, we assumed that NPC tumor tissue would be enriched for miRNAs, so we compared miRNA expression in FFPE from NPC cases and controls using microarray and RNA-Seq technologies. Candidate miRNAs from both technologies were verified by qPCR in FFPE and sera from an independent NPC sample set. In a second workflow, we directly interrogated NPC case and control sera by RNA-Seq for c-miRNAs associated with NPC, with candidate c-miRNAs verified by qPCR in the sera from the same independent NPC sample set. Results Both microarray and RNA-Seq narrowed the miRNA signature to 1-5% of the known mature human miRNAs. Moreover, these two methods produced similar results when applied to the same sample type (FFPE), with RNA-Seq additionally indicating "unknown" miRNAs associated with NPC. However, we found different miRNA profiles in NPC sera compared to FFPE using RNA-Seq, with the few overlapping miRNAs found to be significantly upregulated in FFPE significantly down-regulated in sera (and vice versa). Despite the different miRNA profiles found in FFPE and sera, both profiles strongly associated with NPC, providing two potential sources for biomarker signatures for NPC. Conclusions We determined that the direct interrogation of sera by RNA-Seq was the most informative method for identifying a c-miRNA signature associated with NPC. We also showed that there are different miRNA expression profiles associated with NPC for tumor tissue and sera. These results reflect on the methods and meaning of miRNA biomarkers for NPC in tissue and peripheral blood. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Coronary artery disease is a potentially treatable comorbidity observed frequently in both chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and interstitial lung disease. The prevalence of angiographically proven coronary artery disease in advanced lung disease is not well described. We sought to characterize the treatment patterns of coronary artery disease complicating advanced lung disease and to describe the frequency of occult coronary artery disease in this population. Methods: We performed a 2-center, retrospective cross-sectional study of patients with either chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or interstitial lung disease evaluated for lung transplantation. Medications and diagnoses before the transplant evaluation were recorded in conjunction with left heart catheterization results. Results: Of 473 subjects, 351 had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and 122 had interstitial lung disease. In subjects diagnosed clinically with coronary artery disease, medical regimens included a statin in 78%, antiplatelet therapy in 62%, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker in 42%, and a beta-blocker in 37%. Ten percent were on no medication from these 4 classes. Fifty-seven percent of these subjects were on an antiplatelet agent as well as a statin, and 13% were on neither. Beta-blockers were less frequently prescribed in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease than interstitial lung disease (23% vs 58%, P =.007). Coronary angiography was available in 322 subjects. It demonstrated coronary artery disease in 60% of subjects, and severe coronary artery disease in 16%. Occult coronary artery disease and severe occult coronary artery disease were found in 53% and 9%, respectively. There were no significant differences in angiographic results between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and interstitial lung disease, despite imbalanced risk factors. Conclusions: Coronary artery disease is common in patients with advanced lung disease attributable to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or interstitial lung disease and is under-diagnosed. Guideline-recommended cardioprotective medications are suboptimally utilized in this population. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]