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Biomedical subjects

J L Freeman

Publications and source records attributed to J L Freeman.

At least 109 records · Page 6Linked to original sources

Ethmoidectomy decompression for the treatment of Graves' optic neuropathy.

When orbital decompression becomes necessary in Graves' optic neuropathy, medial wall decompression is a necessary component of the decompression procedure. The ethmoidectomy approach allows more direct visualization of the posterior ethmoids and sphenoids to effect maximum decompression. This is particularly important in cases in which computed tomography shows the medial rectus muscle to be enlarged posteriorly in the orbit. The procedure provides excellent visualization of the medial rectus. As with any medial wall decompression procedure, postoperative restriction of horizontal motility is a frequent complication, often necessitating more than one subsequent operation. The authors describe their experience with the procedure in 25 patients with Graves' optic neuropathy.

Adult↗

Pleomorphic adenoma: a preliminary histopathologic comparison between tumors occurring in the deep and superficial lobes of the parotid gland.

Twenty-four cases of pleomorphic adenoma of the parotid gland were retrospectively reviewed. The histopathological features of capsular thickness, penetration and completeness, tumoral cell population and mitotic activity were analyzed in twelve superficial lobe and twelve deep lobe tumors. The capsules were found to be significantly thicker and less likely to be penetrated by tumor in the deep lobe group. No significant differences in completeness of encapsulation, cell population or mitotic activity were found between the two groups. This may explain the clinical suggestion that the less aggressive surgical approach which is often performed does not compromise the prognosis for recurrence in the deep lobe lesions.

Adenoma↗

AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma of the sphenoid sinus.

The head and neck region is frequently involved by AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma, the oral cavity being the most common site of occurrence. We report on the first case of AIDS-related Kaposi's sarcoma involving the sphenoid sinus where radionuclide bone scanning and MRI were effective in suggesting the diagnosis.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

Use of free auricular composite graft in nasal alar/vestibular reconstruction.

Reconstruction of the nasal alar/vestibular complex following trauma or surgery presents a challenging problem. Options include bone, cartilage, and composite grafts as well as prosthetic materials. We present a case in which resection of an intranasal leiomyosarcoma, leaving a dome defect, was successfully reconstructed with an auricular composite graft.

Ear Cartilage↗

Orbital hemorrhage during dacryocystorhinostomy.

Orbital hemorrhage during dacryocystorhinostomy (DCR) is a very rare but potentially devastating complication of this procedure. It is probably due to trauma to the anterior ethmoidal artery, which has a variable course and may have branches close to or in the surgical site. Increasing resistance to retropulsion of the globe is an important sign of orbital hemorrhage. If the hemorrhage does not resolve spontaneously, direct decompression of the blood within the orbit is necessary. The authors review their experience with this complication of DCR.

Dacryocystorhinostomy↗

Clinical and imaging features of rhabdoid tumor of the kidney.

Rhabdoid tumor of the kidney (RTK) is a rare, highly malignant neoplasm of childhood. The clinical profile of this neoplasm differs from that of Wilms' tumor. We present two cases of RTK. In both our cases, large bulky masses with poorly defined margins and calcifications were demonstrated. The clinical and imaging findings are compared with other childhood renal neoplasms.

Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols↗

Refined DRGs: trials in Europe.

DRGs have recently been revised to account for severity of illness through a more refined use of additional diagnoses (comorbidities and complications). Under the refined model, patients are differentiated with respect to classes of additional diagnoses that are disease and procedure specific. The Refined DRGs were evaluated with data from selected Barcelona hospitals and the findings compared to those obtained with Norwegian and English hospital discharge information. In terms of predictive performance, the Refined DRGs represent only a very small improvement over the second revision DRGs for the study's sample of European data. This lack of significant improvement is likely attributed to misclassification of the European discharges due to limited reporting of additional diagnoses. It is recommended that European countries use the Refined DRGs as a descriptive framework for reporting utilization statistics in order to encourage more complete reporting of comorbidities and complications.

Comorbidity↗

The use of tissue expansion in nasal reconstruction.

The reconstruction of subtotal and total losses of the nose involves the use of local and regional flaps from a variety of areas. The forehead flap, using either a Converse reconstruction or a midline glabellar reconstruction, has been widely used for large losses. In order to obviate this type of reconstruction, we have used tissue expansion to gain large flaps for large defects. Our technique and three representative cases are presented.

Aged↗

A study of cell membrane structure.

Neoplastic transformation has been associated with a variety of structural changes, among which are changes in membrane carbohydrates. Not much is known, though, e.g., how early in the tumourogenic event these changes take place and what effect these changes have on cell growth, invasion, and ability to metastasize. We were able to identify the B-D-Gal(1-3)DGal-NAc as a membrane carbohydrate component present in malignant laryngeal tissue, but not on adjacent normal mucous membrane. This carbohydrate structure was found to be present in metastatic as well as in nonmetastatic tumours. It was also found in well-differentiated as well as poorly differentiated carcinomas. We suggest that changes in carbohydrate components on the cell membrane of the laryngeal cancer cell are an early event in tumour progression and probably are not related to the degree of invasion or the ability to metastasize.

Antigens, Tumor-Associated, Carbohydrate↗

Flow cytometric analysis of DNA content in laryngeal cancer.

DNA content was measured by flow-cytometric analysis in 30 paraffin embedded sections from patients with laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma. The morphological characteristics and N staging of the tumours as registered in their clinical charts were correlated with their DNA content. Eighty per cent of the tumours were found to have a predominantly aneuploid distribution of DNA values. There was no correlation between the N stage of the tumour or degree of cell differentiation and DNA content. A multiploid pattern correlates with non-metastatic laryngeal tumours and we suggest that this pattern may be a good indicator for biological activity.

Aneuploidy↗

Aggressive osteoblastoma of the temporal bone: a case report.

Osteoblastoma is a rare tumor of bone which is usually present in the long bones and vertebrae. Occasionally, they present in the head and neck, and only very rarely will they have a locally aggressive clinical course. We report a case of the aggressive subtype of benign osteoblastoma and its histologic and radiologic presentation.

Adult↗

MRI and neck metastases: a clinical, radiological, pathological correlative study.

In a previous report CT was shown to have no advantage over physical examination in the detection of metastatic neck disease. Therefore, a study was undertaken to evaluate whether MRI would show superiority to the CT in the diagnosis of neck nodes. A series of 35 patients with various head and neck tumors were evaluated clinically, radiographically and pathologically. Eight patients were excluded from the study because of various problems involving the MRI. Therefore, 27 patients with 30 neck dissections were analyzed. There was little advantage of MRI over clinical examination in the detection of metastatic neck disease. The present size criterion for the diagnosis of occult malignant nodes is not reliable. The soft tissue contrast resolution reported by MRI is inadequate to detect minimal morphological changes in lymph nodes involved by metastases, and MRI is difficult in patients who have airway or foodway obstruction.

Head and Neck Neoplasms↗

Hospital use and mortality among Medicare beneficiaries in Boston and New Haven.

We compared rates of hospital use and mortality in fiscal year 1985 among Medicare enrollees in Boston and New Haven, Connecticut. Adjusted rates of discharge, readmission, length of stay, and reimbursement were 47, 29, 15, and 79 percent higher, respectively, in Boston; 40 percent of Boston's deaths occurred in hospitals as compared with 32 percent of New Haven's. High-variation medical conditions (those for which there is little consensus about the need for hospitalization) accounted for most of these differences. By contrast, discharge rates for low-variation medical conditions (which tend to reflect the incidence of disease) were similar. Inpatient case-fatality rates were lower in Boston than in New Haven (RR = 0.85; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.78 to 0.92), but when all deaths (regardless of place of death) were measured, the mortality rates in Boston and New Haven were nearly identical (RR = 0.99; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.93 to 1.05). We conclude that the lower rate of hospital use by Medicare enrollees in New Haven was not associated with a higher overall mortality rate. Population-based as well as hospital-based statistics are needed to evaluate differences in hospital mortality rates for high-variation medical conditions.

Aged↗

Variations in rates of hospitalization of children in three urban communities.

Hospitalization accounts for a large portion of the expenditures for child health care, and differences in the rate of hospitalization may produce important variations in the cost of that care. We studied the rates of hospitalization in Boston, Rochester (N.Y.), and New Haven (Conn.) in 1982. We assigned the risk of hospitalization in Rochester a score of 1.00. Boston children were hospitalized at more than twice the rate of Rochester children for most medical diagnostic categories (relative risk, 2.65; 95 percent confidence interval, 2.53 to 2.78), and the rate for the New Haven group was intermediate (relative risk, 1.80; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.68 to 1.93). Rates of inpatient surgery differed less (Boston relative risk, 1.12; New Haven relative risk, 0.93). The relative risks of hospitalization (as compared with Rochester children) for Boston and New Haven children, respectively, were 3.8 and 2.3 for asthma, 6.1 and 2.9 for toxic ingestions, and 2.6 and 2.7 for head injuries. Fractures of the femur, appendicitis, and bacterial meningitis (conditions uniformly treated in the hospital) had similar rates of hospitalization across the three cities, but the relative risk of hospitalization for aseptic meningitis was 3.7 in Boston. The rates of hospitalization of children in all three communities were below the national averages in 1982. Although this study does not define the reasons for the variation in rates of hospitalization, it is possible that they were related in part to differences in socioeconomic status or access to primary care. The implications of these data for the cost and quality of pediatric care therefore remain to be determined.

Adolescent↗

Lectin binding characteristics of laryngeal cancer.

Previous reports have shown specific binding characteristics of peanut lectin to a variety of lymphatic and epithelial tumors. This study demonstrates the presence of lectin binding sites on cell membrane of laryngeal cancer cells, but not on adjacent normal epithelial linings. It also demonstrates the presence of glycoconjugates responsible for lectin adherence in fetal larynges. The Thomsen-Friedenreich antigen is a glycoprotein structure participating in the structure of the MN blood group antigen. It is also the structure that binds the peanut agglutinin. Perhaps this antigen, which we found on fetal larynges as well as on malignant laryngeal epithelial lining, is another oncodevelopmental antigen.

Adolescent↗

Safety of total thyroidectomy: review of 100 consecutive cases.

During a 6-year period (June 1982 to June 1988), 100 consecutive total thyroidectomies were performed at Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, for benign and malignant disease. There were five permanent complications: one deliberate sacrifice of the recurrent laryngeal nerve and four cases of persistent hypoparathyroidism. Four of these five complications occurred in extracapsular carcinoma and resulted from oncologic wide-field resection and/or deliberate sacrifice. One patient with benign disease suffered initially transient hypoparathyroidism which has now become permanent. Interestingly, two patients actually underwent deliberate sacrifice of a recurrent laryngeal nerve; one patient has made a surprising recovery at 16 months postoperative and now has full vocal cord mobility. Our experience suggests that the morbidity of total thyroidectomy relates primarily to the stage of malignancy and extracapsular extension, necessitating en bloc excision accompanied by additional lymph node dissection. The low incidence of permanent complications in benign thyroid disease suggests the feasibility of total thyroidectomy as the operation of choice when surgeons are familiar with the technique and indications.

Adult↗

Potential for inpatient-outpatient substitution with diagnosis-related groups.

Through analysis of data from the universal health insurance system in Manitoba, Canada, surgical diagnosis-related groups (DRG's) with the greatest potential for inpatient-outpatient substitution are identified. Candidates for both "inpatient shift" and "outpatient shift" are discussed. It is also suggested that determination of the procedure chiefly responsible for hospital admission complements approaches to improve the DRG classification system by measuring severity of illness. Thus, health care planners' efforts may be facilitated in establishing effective payment systems, though definitive guidelines are not provided.

Aged↗