If you would like to submit a current piece of research within the fields of Otolaryngology, Ophthalmology, or Plastic Surgery, please email the link with a short synopsis to fwmd.heent@gmail.com.
3D bioprinting of an implantable xeno-free vascularized human skin graft (Baltazar 2022)
"The combination of anatomy and 3-D printing biotechnology is making its way towards revolutionizing medicine and patient-centered outcomes. As the largest organ in the body, damage to the skin carries severe consequences. New advances in modern 3-D printing technology is working to make human skin that acts as natural skin does. Physicians and engineers are progressing towards the creation of skin grafts that communicate with the vascular system and work as seamlessly as possible. Huge leaps in this innovation have begun with small wounds and ulcers, especially in diabetic patients. In the future, we envision that this technology can aid with larger, more severe injuries like burns that cause deeper nerve damage."
- Maha Khan
Using a Smartphone 3-Dimensional Surface Imaging Technique to Manufacture Custom 3-Dimensional Printed Eyeglasses (de Alba Campomanes 2022)
"Patients are not a one-size-fits-all when it comes to their ophthalmic needs. For example, is difficult to find properly fitted glasses for pediatric patients with facial abnormalities. As a results, these children are at greater risk of vision loss. This study showed that smartphone 3D scanning can better capture patient facial anatomy than than MRI in developing 3D models of surface facial structure via 3D printing. This may produce better-fitting frames, increasing adherence to wearing glasses and consequently improving risk of vision loss."
- Sofia Olsson
Effectiveness of the adipose stem cells in burn wound healing: literature review (Oryan 2021)
"Conclusion: On the basis of our results, Adipose- stem cells (ASCs) therapy can improve wound healing by increasing the healing rate and vascular density and angiogenesis. The ASCs have mainly been evaluated in animal models. Although the results reported provided promising information regarding the effectiveness of ASCs on wound healing, the combination of ASCs with hydro- gels seems to be a step forward in the field of regenerative medicine. This therapeutic strategy has the potential to maintain the stem cells against inappropriate conditions in the damaged tissue. High levels of inflammatory cytokines and free radicals and lack of oxygen supply in burn wound environment lead to apoptosis of the ASCs. Therefore, encapsulation of ASCs into hydrogels/scaffolds can protect cells against harmful burn wound environment and enhance viability of stem cells and their differentiation."
- Ilana Zago
"Initial salvage attempts in free flap surgery for head and neck reconstruction are successful between 60 and 80% of the time. How often does a second revascularization attempt succeed? Researchers from six US medical centers collaborated in a retrospective cohort study looking at 3510 free flap operations to help answer this question, and to identify factors associated with successful outcomes. They found that only 30% of flaps remained viable on second attempts, with the remaining 70% demonstrating necrosis. Arterial or venous thrombectomy was associated with an increase in graft survival, with 17 of 24 (71%) of the flaps surviving and 23 of 55 (42%) becoming necrotic (odds ratio of 3.38; 95% CI, 1.21-9.47). In contrast, vein revision to neighboring branches was associated with decreased survival, with 1 of 24 (4%) of the flaps surviving and 19 of 55 (35%) demonstrating necrosis (odds ratio of 0.08, 95% CI, 0.00-0.60). Outcomes seemed not to be influenced by the type of flap, cause of flap failure, patient comorbidities or heparin administration after the second salvage attempt. Since there are no clear guidelines of management for these patients, this study may help to optimize reconstructive outcomes for patients following an initial salvage failure."
- Caden Duffy
"Many of us have used apps to record the sounds we make in our sleep. This is often out of curiosity or for fun, but this April 2022 study has shown utility in the recordings these apps obtain. Breathing sounds during sleep are an important feature and potential biomarker of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). It was discovered that smartphone sleep recordings could detect the presence of OSA with a sensitivity of 83.0% to 90.8% and a specificity of 64.7% to 80.3%. These values are comparable with portable home sleep test devices, but more easily obtained and cheaper for those who already own a smartphone."
- Sofia Olsson
"A recent study that was published in Canada at Dalhousie University proposed an innovative idea in the standard of care for patients following transoral laser microsurgery for the treatment of laryngeal cancer. Following this procedure, the voice of many patients is often altered as a concomitant of the surgery. Hyaluronic acid is a naturally occurring glycosaminoglycan that has recently been synthetically created for commercial use in cosmetic procedures, popularly non-invasive lip augmentation. In this new study, it was proposed that intra-operational injection of hyaluronic acid be performed on the vocal fold contralateral to the malignancy to improve post op voice outcomes. Although this study did not correlate any significant improvement to a patient's voice following treatment of Laryngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma, it is a reminder to always be innovative in the field of Otolaryngology. This newly proposed mechanism can potentially help other conditions in the future as well."
- Gerik Cervantes