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Objectives: To investigate effects of nitrous oxide (N2O), as inhalational anesthetic agent, on tympanoplasty outcomes. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, patients were randomized into two groups: 39 patients who received N2O as an inhalant anesthesia and 47 patients who did not receive. All were operated on with standard type of ear surgery. The protocol for the two groups was identical. Before surgery baseline audiometry was performed. Postoperative audiological controls were carried out at 3 months. Results: There was no statistically significant difference between two groups regarding graft outcomes. No significant differences were found between the two groups regarding air-bone gap or bone conduction hearing level. Conclusions: Nitrous oxide usage does not seem to have significant impact on graft or hearing outcome of patients undergoing surgical repair of tympanic membrane. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The present study was conducted to compare the rates of recovery from idiopathic sudden deafness after the treatment with oral and intratympanic corticosteroids in both mono and combination therapies. Study design: Triple-blind randomized clinical trial. Settings: Tertiary referral hospital. Subjects and methods: A total of 112 patients who were admitted to the ENT emergency department randomly divided into three groups: an oral corticosteroid plus intratympanic placebo (systemic corticosteroid monotherapy group); an intratympanic corticosteroid plus oral placebo group (IT monotherapy group); and a combination therapy group (IT plus systemic combination group). All patients were treated additionally with antiviral and proton pomp inhibitor. An audiometry was performed once before beginning the therapies and again at the end of the therapy. Results: Of the total of 112 patients, 32 received intratympanic (IT) corticosteroids, 45 were receiving systemic corticosteroids, and 35 were receiving a combination of the two. A total of 74 patients (66.1%) responded positively [response to treatment was calculated as gain of at least 10 dB in 10 dB in average threshold or with the minimum improvement of 15% in speech discrimination scores (SDS)] to corticosteroid therapy. No significant differences were observed between the three groups (IT, systemic group, and combination therapy group) in their overall response to treatment ( p = 0.5). Patients who suffered from concomitant tinnitus and dizziness responded less positively to the treatment ( p < 0.002). Positive family history of SSNHL seems to be negative prognostic factors in the response to treatment ( p < 0.001). The response to treatment was not related to the pattern ( p = 0.04) and initial severity of hearing loss ( p = 0.9). Conclusion: This study did not find any difference in the rate of hearing improvement between systemic, intratympanic, and combined corticosteroid therapy for sudden hearing loss. Level of evidence: 1b. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior animal models have shown that rats sustaining 3-second immediate spinal cord compression had significantly better functional recovery and smaller lesion volumes than rats subjected to compression times of 1 hour, 6 hours, 3 weeks, and 10 weeks after spinal cord injury. We compare locomotor rating scales and spinal cord histopathology after 3 seconds and 10 minute compression times. . Ten rats were assigned into two early (3-second) and late (10-minute) compressive surgery groups. Compressive injury was produced using an aneurysmal clip method. Rats were followed-up for 11 weeks, and behavioral assessment was done by inclined plane test and tail-flick reflex. At the end of the study, the rats were sacrificed, and spinal cord specimens were studied in light and EM. Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) locomotor rating scales were significantly better in the early compression group after the 4th week of evaluation (P<0.05) and persisted throughout the remainder of the study. Histopathology demonstrated decreased normal tissue, more severe gliosis and cystic formation in the late group compared to the early group (P<0.05). In EM study, injuries in the late group including injury to the myelin and axon were more severe than the early compression group, and there was more cytoplasmic edema in the late compression group. Spinal cord injury secondary to 3-second compression improves functional motor recovery, spares more functional tissue, and is associated with less intracellular edema, less myelin and axon damage and more myelin regeneration in rats compared to those with 10 minutes of compression. Inclined plane test and tail-flick reflex had no significant difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background and Objectives: To examine whether spinal cord decompression improves functional recovery and decreases lesion volumes in paraplegic rats two studies were conducted. At the first study, a comparative study was conducted to evaluate decompression timing of 3-seconds, 1 hour, 6 hours, 3 weeks and 10 weeks in 63 rats. The second study was performed to compare the electro-microscopic findings and motor function recovery in a group of 10 rats receiving compression for 3 seconds and 10 minutes. Methods: Compressive injury was produced using an aneurysmal clip method. Behavioral assessment was performed through inclined plane test, tail-flick reflex and Basso, Beattie and Bresnahan (BBB) rating scales. At the end of the study, the rats were sacrificed and spinal cord specimens were studied under light and electron microscopic techniques. Results: The first experiment showed that rats sustaining 3-second immediate spinal cord compression showed significant improved functional recovery (P < 0.05) and smaller lesion volumes (P = 0.039) than rats subjected to compression times of 1 hour, 6 hours, 3 weeks, and 10 weeks after spinal cord injury. BBB rating scales were significantly better in the early compression group after the 4th week of evaluation (P<0.05) and persisted throughout the rest of the study. Histopathology demonstrated decreased normal tissue, more severe gliosis and cystic formation in the late group, compared to the early group (P<0.05). In EM study, injuries in the late group including injury to the myelin and axon were more severe than the early compression group and there was more cytoplasmic edema in the late compression group. Conclusion: Our findings show that the early 3-second decompression after spinal cord injury improves functional motor recovery, spares more functional tissue, which is accompanied by lower intracellular edema and myelin and axon damage, whereas higher myelin regeneration in rats compared to those with 10 minutes of compression. Inclined plane and tail-flick reflex assessments showed no significant difference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]