Nasality Changes With Age in Normal Korean-Speaking Adults

Objectives

This study was performed to investigate the effects of aging on nasality and the influence of age-related changes in nasal cavity volume and nasal patency on nasality.

Methods

A total of 180 healthy Korean-speaking adult volunteers, who had no nasal or voice-related complaints, were enrolled in this study. Nasometry, acoustic rhinometry, and rhinomanometry were performed to obtain the nasalance score, nasal cavity volume, and nasal resistance, respectively. Changes in these parameters with age were analyzed.

Results

Nasal cavity volume increased significantly, and nasal resistance decreased significantly, with age. The nasalance scores for the nasal passage and oronasal passage decreased significantly with age, while there were no age-related changes in nasalance scores for the oral passage.

Conclusion

Nasalance scores for the passages containing nasal consonants decreased with age although significant increases were observed in nasal cavity volume and nasal patency with age. Therefore, the age-related decreases in nasalance scores may result from factors other than changes in the nasal cavity.

[Progress in the role of neurotrophin-3 and its receptors in the development of cochlear spiral ganglion in rats]

Neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) attracted increasing attention about NTFs researches in recent years. But the mechanism of promoting the development of neurons and neurite extension is not clear. Recombinant human NT-3 or NT-3 gene is commonly used in the treatment of peripheral and central neurons system damage. When rats are born, the cochlear is not mature yet. It is a suitable experimental animal for studying the morphological and functional development of the peripheral auditory pathway. It was found that NT-3 could promote the survival, growth, division and extension of the cochlear neurons in rats. To make clear the role of NT-3 in the development of spiral ganglion in the rat cochlear will be of significance for the treatment of nervous hearing loss by NT-3 in the future.

[A case of laryngeal neuroendocrine carcinoma]

The patient had a sore throat without any special incentive for 2 months, accompanied by irritating cough and white sputum. Dynamic laryngoscopy showed: the right side of laryngeal surface of epiglottis can be seen an uneven purple mass, considered the possibility of fibrous hemangioma or other benign tumor. Intraoperative we had seen the tumor was located on the right side of the laryngeal surface of epiglottis, the size about 1.0 cm×0.8 cm.Postoperative pathology reported: Syn (+), CgA (+), CD56 (focal +), CK (+). Diagnose:(epiglottis) neuroendocrine carcinoma.

[The invasive fungal rhino-sinusitis cased by aspergillus nidulans: one case report]

This report described a case of the invasive fungal sinusitis cased by asperigillus. A 51 years old women patient complained a sense of welling on right facial, mild pain. No complain of facial numbness and toothache. During the 2 months the symptom repeatedly occurrence. A combined treatment including endoscopic sinus surgery (ESS) and anti fungal therapy was performed in a patient with invasive fungal rhino sinusitis. After 3 months of operation, the patient recovered well. No recurrence, no jaw facial pain and swelling, no eye movement disorder.

Effect of topical mitomycin C for antrostomy in rabbit with sinusitis

The aim of this study is to evaluate if mitomycin C (MMC), applied topically at the site of maxillary antrostomy in experimentally inflamed maxillary sinuses, may reduce postoperative ostial stenosis without any harmful effect. Twenty-four rabbits with experimentally induced maxillary sinusitis underwent maxillary antrostomy bilaterally. MMC at a concentration of 0.4 or 1 mg/ml was applied at the site of antrostomy on the right whilst the antrostomy site on the left served as the control. Half of each MMC concentration group of animals were killed after 3 weeks, and the remaining half after 6 weeks. For every rabbit, the areas of antrostomies were measured and mucosal specimens around the ostia were obtained for microscopic evaluation at the time of antrostomy and killing. Within each MMC concentration group, MMC-treated antrostomies were significantly wider than those of the controls (P < 0.05), even after 6 weeks. However, comparison of the areas of MMC-treated antrostomies between the two MMC concentration groups did not show any significant difference (P > 0.05). No systemic side effect or permanent mucosal damage was detected. These results suggest that postoperative topical MMC at a concentration of 0.4 mg/ml can be used to prolong the patency of maxillary antrostomy in an inflammed sinus.