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Biomedical subjects

C Faris

Publications and source records attributed to C Faris.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2007

Estimation of tracheostomy tube cuff pressure by pilot balloon palpation.

Two methods can be used to assess the intra-cuff pressure of tracheostomy tubes: digital palpation of the pilot balloon and use of a hand-held manometer. We conducted a telephone survey to determine the prevalence of both methods in intensive care units within 21 teaching hospitals across the United Kingdom. Forty-two per cent of the intensive care units surveyed used a protocol for monitoring cuff pressure with a manometer.A study to compare these two methods, using the manometer as the reference standard, was then carried out. The cuff pressure was correctly estimated in pre-inflated tracheostomy tubes, in a tracheal model, by 61 per cent of a cross-section of intensive care unit and otolaryngology staff.Using pilot balloon palpation is inaccurate and leaves a significant proportion of patients at risk of tracheal injury. We advocate the wider availability of hand-held pressure manometers in intensive care units and the institution of protocols for monitoring cuff pressure for any patient with a tracheostomy tube with an inflated cuff in situ.

Cross-Sectional Studies↗
PubMed2006

Functional rhinoplasty with batten and spreader grafts for correction of internal nasal valve incompetence.

OBJECTIVE: We a describe technique for correction of internal nasal valve incompetence (INVI) using functional rhinoplasty (FRP) with combined cartilaginous batten and spreader grafts and report the functional and cosmetic outcomes. DESIGN: Prospective series using subjective improvement in nasal airway and quality of life. SETTING: Subregional ENT centre, one operating rhinologist. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-three consecutive adults presenting to ENT department at North Hertfordshire NHS Trust with symptomatic INVI. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: Pre and post-operative symptom scores for nasal obstruction and its impact on overall quality of life using visual analogue scales (1-100mm). Cosmetic outcome graded using subjective scores. Statistical analysis performed using the Wilcoxon signed rank test. RESULTS: We found a median subjective improvement on the visual analogue scale of 55 mm for nasal patency (p<0.001) and of 49 mm for quality of life (p<0.001). Twenty-two patients felt that the appearance of their nose had not changed or had significantly improved post operatively. CONCLUSION: Combined use of batten and spreader grafts for the correction of INVI in normal or narrow nasal vaults is effective without compromising cosmesis.

Cartilage↗
PubMed2005

How we do it: free conchal cartilage revisited for primary reconstruction of attic defects in combined approach tympanoplasty.

Keypoints * There are concerns over the efficacy of free cartilage autografts in attic reconstruction (scutumplasty) for combined approach tympanoplasty (CAT). * Our operative technique uses free conchal cartilage autografts and an additional piece of conchal cartilage to buttress the reconstruction. * Of the 16 cases where this technique was used, there were two cases (13%) of failure of the attic reconstruction and a keratin pearl (residual disease) in one case (6%). This compares favourably with comparable series using a variety of reconstruction techniques.

Cholesteatoma, Middle Ear↗
PubMed1986

Short-term persistence of carcinoma of the uterine cervix after radiation. An indicator of long-term prognosis.

Between 1959 and 1980, 590 evaluable patients received a full course of radiation therapy as primary treatment of invasive epidermoid carcinoma of the cervix. At follow-up visits conducted between 1 and 3 months after the completion of radiation, 72 patients had physical or biopsy findings indicative of persistent disease (PER), whereas an additional 36 had findings suggestive of tumor (SUS). The remaining 482 demonstrated a complete response (CR) by 1 month after the administration of treatment. The lower the stage, the more likely was a CR by 3 months (Stage I, 94.4%; Stage II, 86.2%; Stage III, 62.7%). A higher proportion of CR was obtained in patients with tumor of less than 5 cm in diameter than in those with tumors greater than 5 cm in diameter (82.4% versus 76.3%, respectively; 0.1 greater than P greater than 0.05). CR patients enjoyed a marked survival advantage over those with PER, whereas women with SUS demonstrated intermediate 5-year survival (76.0%, 41.5%, and 7.4%, respectively; P less than 0.0001). The same survival gradient of CR greater than SUS greater than PER was demonstrated when tumors of each stage were analyzed separately. There was no difference in survival between patients with PER or SUS at 1 month and those with PER or SUS at 3 months. The proportion of recurrent tumors diagnosed as exclusively distant metastases decreased from CR to SUS to PER. Analysis of dosimetry data suggests that the likelihood of CR was not a function of treatment variability. It was concluded that tumors that do not regress promptly are likely to recur, most with distant metastases. Such poor-prognosis patients should be targeted for early adjuvant or salvage therapy.

Actuarial Analysis↗