HNO
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Impairment of the peripheral or central part of the facial nerve causes an ipsilateral peripheral facial nerve paresis. It is quite a common syndrome and affects 20-35 persons per 100,000 per year in Western Europe and the United States. A possible complication of facial palsy is paralytic lagophthalmos with aesthetic and functional impairment for the patient. ⋯ The eyebrow, upper and lower lids, medial and lateral lid angle as well as the lacrimal system need to be seen as functional units and can be corrected with local surgical procedures. Restoration of eye closure is the most important goal in treating the affected eye. Due to the significant aesthetic limitations and resultant psychological stress for the patient cosmetic aspects must be included in the surgical concept.
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The medically approved indications for social rights for compensation and the rights of severely disabled persons have been accepted for decades. After the introduction of the healthcare system act on 12th December 2008 these indications can no longer be applied. ⋯ Since 1st January 2009 health disorders are not estimated according to the scale of disability but according to the scale of conditions due to injuries. The structure of the healthcare system act, the general modifications and certain consequences for the field of ORL will be described.
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Comparative Study
[Dilatation tracheotomy update : indications, limitations and management of complications].
Percutaneous dilatational tracheotomy is a standard procedure today for transient airway management in intensive care units. When correctly indicated and applied, preferably following interdisciplinary case discussion with the otolaryngologist, PDT seems to be as safe as classical surgical tracheotomy. The latter is the alternative when PDT is contraindicated. ⋯ In contrast to surgical tracheotomy, PDT presents more challenges to the physicians and nursing staff in order to avoid specific complications such as re-cannulation into a via falsa followed by acute dyspnea. The otolaryngologist is an important partner in the management of PDT-related complications due to his discipline-specific experience. Further prospective trials, especially concerning long-term complications, are needed to answer the question of whether PDT or surgical tracheotomy is the best method in situations with overlapping indications.
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The current guideline discusses conservative and surgical therapy of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in adults from the perspective of the ear, nose and throat specialist. The revised guideline was commissioned by the German Society of Ear-Nose-Throat, Head-Neck Surgery (DG HNO KHC) and compiled by the DG HNO KHC's Working Group on Sleep Medicine. ⋯ Evaluation of the publications found was made according to the recommendations of the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine (OCEBM). This yielded a recommendation grade, whereby grade A represents highly evidence-based studies and grade D those with a low evidence base.
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The procedure of instrument navigation has been an established one since its introduction in ENT by Schloendorff. It facilitates better intraoperative orientation. The opto-electric and electromagnetic procedures are sophisticated principles of intraoperative position recognition. ⋯ The current boundaries of simple instrument navigation in the frontal skull base are set by the attainable accuracy of approx. 2 mm and the relatively simple representation of the information in planar sectional views. Instrument navigation should be used in the frontal skull base as frequently as possible, even in less complex procedures. Only in this way can familiarity with the system be achieved.