Maxillary osteosarcoma in a young patient undergoing postorthodontic treatment follow-up: The importance of ongoing oral examinations

Osteosarcoma is a common primary malignant tumor in long bones; it generally occurs in young adults. It is considered infrequent in the head and neck regions, where it is usually associated with poor outcomes and rates of survival. From a histopathologic point of view, osteosarcomas are commonly classified as osteoblastic, chondroblastic, or fibroblastic, although several unusual microscopic subtypes have also been reported. The purpose of this article was to present a case report of a maxillary chondroblastic osteosarcoma involving the maxillary sinus and the maxilla of a young woman who was diagnosed during early postorthodontic treatment follow-up. Treatment, prosthetic rehabilitation, and follow-up details are provided. Most importantly, this patient shows the importance of complete and systematic oral examinations during any routine dental treatment. (Am J Orthod Dentofacial Orthop 2011;139:845-8)

Bone augmentation and autogenous transplantation of premolar to the site of the fissure in a cleft palate patient

This article presents a case report of autogenous tooth transplantation to the site of the fissure, in addition to bone augmentation with graft of autogenous bone harvested from the iliac crest, performed in a cleft palate patient, who had insufficient bone volume. A non-syndromic 10-year-old girl, with a unilateral cleft lip and palate, incisal transforamen fissures, agenesis of the maxillary left central incisor and both maxillary lateral incisors, was treated with autogenous bone graft in the cleft area. The orthodontic treatment plan was to replace the missing lateral incisors with the maxillary canines and to extract the mandibular first premolars. One of the mandibular premolars was extracted from its site with 2/3 of its root formation completed and transplanted to the maxillary left central incisor area. After orthodontic treatment, the anatomic crowns were characterized with composite resin. Autogenous tooth transplantation can be performed in the area of the fissure in young cleft palate patients, by performing bone graft augmentation before transplantation of the tooth, to gain sufficient recipient alveolar bone volume. A multidisciplinary approach is mandatory for the success of this clinical procedure, especially in cleft palate patients. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S.

Treatment of severe facial asymmetry secondary to osteochondroma of the mandibular condyle: case report

Osteochondroma (OC) is the most common benign tumor of long bones. However it is rarely found in the facial skeleton, being the coronoid process and mandibular condyle the most affected sites in this region. It basically consists in bone growth covered by cartilage. The etiology is still controversial: neoplastic, developmental, reparative and traumatic origins have been discussed in literature. The treatments of these lesions include total condylectomy or local resection of the lesion. This paper aims to report a case of a patient with history of trauma and possible fracture of the mandibular condyle in childhood, which in youth developed dentofacial deformity with severe facial asymmetry. The treatment consisted of resection of lesion both with maxillary and mandibular osteotomies associated with graft from the iliac crest bone. Actually, the patient is with a favorable aesthetic, without functional deficit and absence of lesion’s recurrence.

Challenges to the treatment and new perspectives for the eradication of helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is one of the leading causes of gastric diseases such as chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, and gastric adenocarcinoma. The current treatment of H. pylori infection with antibiotics and proton pump inhibitors has several limitations, including poor adherence and intrinsic patient-related factors, drug resistance, and the absence of adequate treatments. This review summarizes the current therapeutic approaches to eradicating H. pylori, the difficulties associated with its treatment, and several new perspectives aimed at improving existing treatment strategies.

Cost-effectiveness and budget impact of saxagliptine as additional therapy to metformin for the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2 in the Brazilian private health system

Cost-effectiveness and budget impact of saxagliptine as additional therapy to metformin for the treatment of diabetes mellitus type 2 in the Brazilian private health system Objectives: To compare costs and clinical benefits of three additional therapies to metformin (MF) for patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 (DM2). Methods: A discrete event simulation model seas built to estimate the cost-utility ratio (cost per quality-adjusted life years [QALY)) of saxagliptine as an additional therapy to MF when compared to rosiglitazone or pioglitazone. A budget impact model (BIM) was built to simulate the economic impact of saxagliptine use in the context of the Brazilian private health system. Results: The acquiring medication costs for the hypothetical patient group analyzed in a time frame of three years, were R$ 10,850,185, R$ 14,836,265 and R$ 14,679,099 for saxagliptine, pioglitazone and rosiglitazone, respectively. Saxagliptine showed lower costs and greater effectiveness in both comparisons, with projected savings for the first three years of R$ 3,874 and R$ 3,996, respectively. The BIM estimated cumulative savings of R$ 417,958 with the repayment of saxagliptine in three years from the perspective of a health plan with 1,000,000 covered individuals. Conclusion: From the perspective of private paying source, the projection is that adding saxagliptine with MF save costs when compared with the addition of rosiglitazone or pioglitazone in patients with DM2 that have not reached the HbA1c goal with metformin monotherapy. The BIM of including saxagliptine in the reimbursement lists of health plans indicated significant savings on the three-year horizon.

[Adapted and Standardised Patient Management in the Treatment of Neovascular AMD in the Outpatient Setting of a University Eye Hospital.]

Visual results in treating neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD) using intravitreal injected anti-VEGF (IVT) clearly depend on injection frequency. Regarding to the European approval Ranibizumab has to be used only in cases of recurrent visual loss after the loading phase. In contrast monthly treatment--as also provided in the ANCHOR and MARINA studies--is generally allowed in Switzerland. However, it is commonly tried to reduce the injection frequency because of the particular cost situation in all health systems and of cause also due to the necessary strict monitoring and reinjection regimes, which raise management problems with increasing patient numbers. In this article the special treatment regimes of our University Eye Hospital is presented, in which a reduced injection frequency basically leads to the same increased and stable visual results as in ANCHOR and MARINA; however, needing significantly more injections as generally provided in other countries of Europe. The main focus for achieving this in a large number of patients is placed on re-structuring our outpatient flow for IVT patients with particular emphasis on patient separation and standardisation of treatment steps leading to significantly reduced time consumption per patient. Measurements of timing and patient satisfaction before and after restructuring underline its importance in order to be able to treat more patients at a high quality even in the future. The exceptional importance of spectral domain OCT measurements as the most important criterium for indicating re-treatment is illustrated.

Introduction of a novel dose saving acquisition mode for the PortalVision aS500 EPID to facilitate on-line patient setup verification

In external beam radiotherapy, electronic portal imaging becomes more and more an indispensable tool for the verification of the patient setup. For the safe clinical introduction of high dose conformal radiotherapy like intensity modulated radiation therapy, on-line patient setup verification is a prerequisite to ensure that the planned dosimetric coverage of the tumor volume is actually realized in the patient. Since the direction of setup fields often deviates from the direction of the treatment beams, extra dose is delivered to the patient during the acquisition of these portal images which may reach clinical relevance. The aim of this work was to develop a new acquisition mode for the PortalVision aS500 electronic portal imaging device from Varian Medical Systems that allows one to take portal images with reduced dose while keeping good image quality. The new acquisition mode, called RadMode, selectively enables and disables beam pulses during image acquisition allowing one to stop wasting valuable dose during the initial acquisition of "reset frames." Images of excellent quality can be taken with 1 MU only. This low dose per image facilitates daily setup verification with considerably reduced extra dose.

Hypothetical mortality risk associated with spiral tomography of the maxilla and mandible prior to endosseous implant treatment

Radiation dose delivered from the SCANORA radiography unit during the cross-sectional mode for dentotangential projections was determined. With regard to oral implantology, patient situations of an edentulous maxilla and mandible as well as a single tooth gap in regions 16 and 46 were simulated. Radiation doses were measured between 0.2 and 22.5 mGy to organs and tissues in the head and neck region when the complete maxilla or mandible was examined. When examining a single tooth gap, only 8% to 40% of that radiation dose was generally observed. Based on these results, the mortality risk was estimated according to a calculation model recommended by the Committee on the Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiations. The mortality risk ranged from 31.4 x 10(-6) for 20-year-old men to 4.8 x 10(-6) for 65-year-old women when cross-sectional imaging of the complete maxilla was performed. The values decreased by 70% when a single tooth gap in the molar region of the maxilla was radiographed. The figures for the mortality risk for examinations of the complete mandible were similar to those for the complete maxilla, but the mortality risk decreased by 80% if only a single tooth gap in the molar region of the mandible was examined. Calculations according to the International Commission on Radiological Protection carried out for comparison did not reveal the decrease of the mortality risk with age and resulted in a higher risk value in comparison to the group of 35-year old individuals in calculations according to the Committee on the Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiations.

[Artificial intravascular oxygenation (IVOX). Application to the treatment of postoperative respiratory failure]

Very recently, the concept of artificial intracorporeal oxygenation of blood for patients suffering from respiratory failure has been introduced into clinical practice through development of a totally implantable intravascular oxygenator (IVOX). We report on the use of such a device in a patient who developed severe respiratory insufficiency secondary to prolonged hypovolaemic shock and pneumonia following successful repair of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm in September, 1990. Postoperatively, severe hypoxaemia occurred (AaDO2 548-602 torr) despite extensive mechanical ventilatory support. There was no obvious chance to overcome this situation by conventional therapeutic measures and the decision was made to institute IVOX therapy. Hypoxaemia was resolved immediately and both FiO2 and tidal volume could be reduced within hours. The patient's respiratory condition continued to improve over the next days leading to termination of IVOX therapy after 71 hours. However, the necessity of long-term ventilatory support secondary to recurrent pneumonia and sepsis, multiple abdominal reoperations for ischemic colitis and retroperitoneal abscess prolonged his recovery. He was discharged from the hospital after four months and is alive and well now 14 months after his operation. He is the first long-term survivor after IVOX therapy in Europe. IVOX may be successfully used in selected patients while the indications and it's potential role in the therapy of severe respiratory failure still need to be defined.

A comparison of patient characteristics and 30-day mortality outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation and surgical aortic valve replacement for the treatment of aortic stenosis: a two-centre study

AIMS: It is unclear whether transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) addresses an unmet clinical need for those currently rejected for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) and whether there is a subgroup of high-risk patients benefiting more from TAVI compared to SAVR. In this two-centre, prospective cohort study, we compared baseline characteristics and 30-day mortality between TAVI and SAVR in consecutive patients undergoing invasive treatment for aortic stenosis. METHODS AND RESULTS: We pre-specified different adjustment methods to examine the effect of TAVI as compared with SAVR on overall 30-day mortality: crude univariable logistic regression analysis, multivariable analysis adjusted for baseline characteristics, analysis adjusted for propensity scores, propensity score matched analysis, and weighted analysis using the inverse probability of treatment (IPT) as weights. A total of 1,122 patients were included in the study: 114 undergoing TAVI and 1,008 patients undergoing SAVR. The crude mortality rate was greater in the TAVI group (9.6% vs. 2.3%) yielding an odds ratio [OR] of 4.57 (95%-CI 2.17-9.65). Compared to patients undergoing SAVR, patients with TAVI were older, more likely to be in NYHA class III and IV, and had a considerably higher logistic EuroSCORE and more comorbid conditions. Adjusted OR depended on the method used to control for confounding and ranged from 0.60 (0.11-3.36) to 7.57 (0.91-63.0). We examined the distribution of propensity scores and found scores to overlap sufficiently only in a narrow range. In patients with sufficient overlap of propensity scores, adjusted OR ranged from 0.35 (0.04-2.72) to 3.17 (0.31 to 31.9). In patients with insufficient overlap, we consistently found increased odds of death associated with TAVI compared with SAVR irrespective of the method used to control confounding, with adjusted OR ranging from 5.88 (0.67-51.8) to 25.7 (0.88-750). Approximately one third of patients undergoing TAVI were found to be potentially eligible for a randomised comparison of TAVI versus SAVR. CONCLUSIONS: Both measured and unmeasured confounding limit the conclusions that can be drawn from observational comparisons of TAVI versus SAVR. Our study indicates that TAVI could be associated with either substantial benefits or harms. Randomised comparisons of TAVI versus SAVR are warranted.

Aesthetic outcome of cleft lip and palate treatment. Perceptions of patients, families, and health professionals compared to the general public

The aesthetic outcome of cleft treatment is of great importance due to its complex management and the psychosocial consequences of this defect. The aim of the study was to assess the aesthetic evaluations of patients following cleft surgery by various groups and investigate potential associations of the assessments with life quality parameters. Head photos of 12 adult patients with treated unilateral cleft lip and palate were evaluated by laypeople and professionals. A questionnaire was distributed and answered by the patients and their parents. Intra-panel agreement was high (α > 0.8) for laypeople and professionals. Between-groups agreement was high for both laypeople and professionals, but not when patients and/or parents were tested. Professionals, parents, and patients were more satisfied with patients' appearance than laypeople, although in general all groups were not highly satisfied. Low satisfaction with aesthetics correlated with increased self-reported influence of the cleft in the patients' social activity and professional life (0.56 < rho < 0.74, p < 0.05). These findings highlight the observed negative influence of the cleft on the patient's social activity and professional life and underline the need for the highest quality of surgical outcome for this group of patients.

Frameless linac-based (Novalis TX) stereotactic treatment for vestibular schwannoma that extend distally into the iac (Internal Acoustic Canal): an analysis of the dose to the cochlea

Objectives: We compare the dose parameters between 3 different radiosurgery delivery techniques which may have an impact on cochlea function. Methods: Five patients with unilateral vestibular schwannoma (VS) were selected for this study. Planning procedure was carried out using the BrainLAB® iPlan planning system v. 4.5. For each patient three different planning techniques were used: dynamic arc (DA) with 5 arcs per plan, hybrid arc (HA) with 5 arcs per plan and IMRT with 8 fields per plan. For each technique, two plans were generated with different methods: with the first method (PTV coverage) it was the goal to fully cover the PTV with at least 12 Gy (normalization: 12 Gy covered 99% of the PTV) and with the second method (cochlea sparing) it was the goal to spare the cochlea (normalization: 12 Gy covers 50% of the PTV/V4Gy of cochlea lower than 1%). Plan evaluation was done considering target volume and coverage (conformity and homogeneity) and OAR constraints (mean (Dmean) and maximum dose (Dmax) to cochlea, Dmax to brainstem and cochlea). The total number of monitor units (MU) was analyzed. Results: The median tumor volume was 0.95 cm³ (range, 0.86-3 cm³). The median PTV was 1.44 cm³ (range, 1-3.5 cm³). The median distance between the tumor and the cochlea's modiulus was 2.7 mm (range, 1.8-6.3 mm). For the PTV coverage method, when we compared the cochlear dose in VS patients planned with DA, HA and IMRT, there were no significant differences in Dmax (p = 0.872) and in Dmean (p= 0.860). We found a significant correlation (p< 0.05) between the target volume and the cochlear Dmean for all plans with Pearson's coefficient correlation of 0.90, 0.92 and 0.94 for the DA, HA and IMRT techniques, respectively. For the cochlea sparing method, when we compared the cochlear dose in VS patients planned with DA, HA and IMRT, there were no significant differences in Dmax (p = 0.310) and in Dmean (p= 0.275). However, in this group the V4Gy of the ipsilateral cochlea represents less than 1%. When using the HA or IMRT technique, the homogeneity and conformity in the PTV, but also the number of MUs were increased in comparison to the DA technique. Conclusion: VS tumors that extend distally into the IAC had an equivalent sparing of cochlea with DA approach compared with the HA and IMRT techniques. Disclosure: No significant relationships.

Characteristics and comprehensiveness of adult HIV care and treatment programmes in Asia-Pacific, sub-Saharan Africa and the Americas: results of a site assessment conducted by the International epidemiologic Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) Collaboration

INTRODUCTION HIV care and treatment programmes worldwide are transforming as they push to deliver universal access to essential prevention, care and treatment services to persons living with HIV and their communities. The characteristics and capacity of these HIV programmes affect patient outcomes and quality of care. Despite the importance of ensuring optimal outcomes, few studies have addressed the capacity of HIV programmes to deliver comprehensive care. We sought to describe such capacity in HIV programmes in seven regions worldwide. METHODS Staff from 128 sites in 41 countries participating in the International epidemiologic Databases to Evaluate AIDS completed a site survey from 2009 to 2010, including sites in the Asia-Pacific region (n=20), Latin America and the Caribbean (n=7), North America (n=7), Central Africa (n=12), East Africa (n=51), Southern Africa (n=16) and West Africa (n=15). We computed a measure of the comprehensiveness of care based on seven World Health Organization-recommended essential HIV services. RESULTS Most sites reported serving urban (61%; region range (rr): 33-100%) and both adult and paediatric populations (77%; rr: 29-96%). Only 45% of HIV clinics that reported treating children had paediatricians on staff. As for the seven essential services, survey respondents reported that CD4+ cell count testing was available to all but one site, while tuberculosis (TB) screening and community outreach services were available in 80 and 72%, respectively. The remaining four essential services - nutritional support (82%), combination antiretroviral therapy adherence support (88%), prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) (94%) and other prevention and clinical management services (97%) - were uniformly available. Approximately half (46%) of sites reported offering all seven services. Newer sites and sites in settings with low rankings on the UN Human Development Index (HDI), especially those in the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief focus countries, tended to offer a more comprehensive array of essential services. HIV care programme characteristics and comprehensiveness varied according to the number of years the site had been in operation and the HDI of the site setting, with more recently established clinics in low-HDI settings reporting a more comprehensive array of available services. Survey respondents frequently identified contact tracing of patients, patient outreach, nutritional counselling, onsite viral load testing, universal TB screening and the provision of isoniazid preventive therapy as unavailable services. CONCLUSIONS This study serves as a baseline for on-going monitoring of the evolution of care delivery over time and lays the groundwork for evaluating HIV treatment outcomes in relation to site capacity for comprehensive care.

Preinterventional screening of the TAVI patient: how to choose the suitable patient and the best procedure.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is a novel therapy, which has transformed the management of inoperable patients presenting with symptomatic severe aortic stenosis (AS). It is also a proven and less invasive alternative therapeutic option for high-risk symptomatic patients presenting with severe AS who are otherwise eligible for surgical aortic valve replacement. Patient age is not strictly a limitation for TAVI but since this procedure is currently restricted to high-risk and inoperable patients, it follows that most patients selected for TAVI are at an advanced age. Patient frailty and co-morbidities need to be assessed and a clinical judgment made on whether the patient will gain a measureable improvement in their quality of life. Risk stratification has assumed a central role in selecting suitable patients and surgical risk algorithms have proven helpful in this regard. However, limitations exist with these risk models, which must be understood in the context of TAVI. When making final treatment decisions, it is essential that a collaborative multidisciplinary "heart team" be involved and this is stressed in the most recent guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology. Choosing the best procedure is contingent upon anatomical feasibility, and multimodality imaging has emerged as an integral component of the pre-interventional screening process in this regard. The transfemoral route is now considered the default approach although vascular complications remain a concern. A minimal vessel diameter of 6 mm is required for currently commercial available vascular introducer sheaths. Several alternative access routes are available to choose from when confronted with difficult iliofemoral anatomy such as severe peripheral vascular disease or diffuse circumferential vessel calcification. The degree of aortic valve leaflet and annular calcification also needs to be assessed as the latter is a risk factor for post-procedural paravalvular aortic regurgitation. The ultimate goal of patient selection is to achieve the highest procedural success rate while minimizing complications and to choose patients most likely to derive tangible benefit from this procedure.

An evaluation of the Texas "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet: A state mandated patient education document for induced abortion

Many patient educational documents are written at a grade level higher than the level at which most individuals can read. This discrepancy can lead to treatment noncompliance and negative health outcomes. Therefore, it is important that patients receive readable health information. The Texas "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet is a state mandated informational document provided to women seeking abortion services. Given the significance of the abortion procedure, it is imperative that women considering having an abortion receive accurate and readable health materials. However, no published studies were found that evaluated the readability of the "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to assess the readability of the "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet. To assess the readability, the Flesch-Kincaid readability test was used to evaluate the reading grade level of the entire "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet and each of the 7 sections of the booklet. The results showed that the readability of the entire booklet as well as each section of the booklet was written below the 8th grade reading level. Although the booklet was written below the estimated United States reading level (8th grade), the reading level of this booklet may still be too high for people in Texas who read below the 8th grade level. Based on these results, it is recommended that health care professionals involved in the distribution and explanation of the "A Woman's Right to Know" booklet provide their patients with both written and verbal medical information. The patients should be allowed to ask questions about the abortion procedure so that they can make the most informed choice.^