The Laryngoscope
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Bupivacaine for postoperative analgesia following endoscopic sinus surgery.
This prospective study was conducted to examine pain after endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS). The hypothesis was that a long-acting anesthetic agent would result in patients experiencing less pain in the 24-hour postoperative period and therefore needing fewer oral analgesics. We randomized 100 patients undergoing ESS to receive either lidocaine (1% or 2%) with epinephrine or bupivacaine (0.25% or 0.5%) with epinephrine as an anesthetic and for a sphenopalatine block. ⋯ We further found that the type of anesthetic used did not significantly affect postoperative pain; pain score changes and use of analgesics were similar between the two anesthesia groups. Postoperative pain was also similar between the "packing" and "no packing" groups. Although patients receiving packing had consistently lower increases in pain (and in fact many patients in this group had decreases in pain from baseline), none of the differences between group means was statistically significant.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
Holmium:YAG laser endoscopic sinus surgery: a randomized, controlled study.
Although surgical lasers were introduced to the field of otolaryngology more than 20 years ago, their use in rhinologic surgery has remained relatively limited. With the development of the holmium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (YAG) laser, a device is now available that offers those features necessary for effective sinus surgery:precise bone ablation, efficient soft tissue coagulation, and fiberoptic transmission. This solid-state laser of 2.1-microns wavelength can be coupled with endoscopic instrumentation for the surgical treatment of sinus disease. ⋯ Endoscopic sinus surgery with the holmium:YAG laser is as effective as nonlaser techniques in relieving the symptoms of chronic sinusitis. Laser surgery offers improved intraoperative hemostasis, but it causes increased postoperative tissue edema. The holmium:YAG laser provides the surgeon with an additional tool for the performance of safe, effective sinus surgery.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Safety and tolerability of the implantable recurrent laryngeal nerve stimulator.
The recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN) stimulator has been implanted on a limited basis since 1988 for control of spasmodic dysphonia. A similar vagus nerve stimulator has been implanted in a larger series of patients to control epilepsy. The safety and tolerability of these two stimulators were evaluated. ⋯ All patients were monitored for vital signs, electrocardiographic changes, and adverse effects. The absence of changes in vital signs and electrocardiograms during vagal stimulation establishes the safety of this treatment. Since placement of the electrode around the vagus nerve is an easier surgical technique than placement deep to the RLN, it seems reasonable to change the technique to implant the stimulator on the vagus in patients with spasmodic dysphonia.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical Trial
Effectiveness of salvage neck dissection for advanced regional metastases when induction chemotherapy and radiation are used for organ preservation.
The recently completed VA Cooperative Study (CSP #268) of induction chemotherapy (cisplatin/5-FU) and definitive radiation (6600 to 7600 cGy) for organ preservation in advanced (stage III or IV) laryngeal cancer demonstrated that, although larynx preservation could be achieved in 64% of randomized preservation could be achieved in 64% of randomized patients, overall survival rates were not improved over conventional treatment (surgery/postoperative radiation). Of 166 patients randomized to induction chemotherapy, 46 had N2 or N3 disease and were analyzed to determine the effectiveness of the organ preservation treatment strategy on control of neck disease and survival. The clinical response of neck metastases to induction chemotherapy was significantly associated with subsequent salvage neck dissection (P = .008). ⋯ This was related primarily to failure to control the disease in the neck. The overall survival of patients achieving a complete response in the neck was improved over the randomized group of N2 or N3 patients treated with primary surgery. The findings suggest that response of neck nodes should be assessed independently of primary tumor response in trials of organ preservation strategies using induction chemotherapy, and that failure to achieve a clinical complete response in the neck warrants planned early salvage neck dissection in order to achieve improved overall survival.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical Trial
The effects of peritonsillar infiltration on the reduction of intraoperative blood loss and post-tonsillectomy pain in children.
Improved hemostasis and reduction of postoperative pain are desired goals when performing tonsillectomy. This is especially true in children, who may be reluctant to receive intramuscular injections for pain relief and who may lose a higher percentage of total blood volume during surgery than adults. This study evaluated the effects of peritonsillar infiltration upon operative blood loss and postoperative pain in 42 children. ⋯ Because of the small sample size we were unable to evaluate the beneficial effects of peritonsillar infiltration performed with bupivacaine upon the reduction of the severity of pain and the requirement for narcotic analgesics following tonsillectomy. Therefore, until further studies demonstrate such efficacy, all peritonsillar infiltrations should be performed solely for the purpose of reducing operative blood loss. As such, infiltrations should be performed with either normal saline containing epinephrine (1:200,000) or lidocaine containing epinephrine (1:200,000).