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Introduction. Thyroglossal duct cysts are developmental, epithelial lesions localized in the neck’s median line. They occur mainly in children and adolescents; however, they also occur in one-third of patients older than 20 years of age. The symptoms dependent on the size and location along the path of the thyroglossal duct. Case outline. This article presents a case, with diagnostic imaging and surgical treatment, of a two-yearold girl hospitalized due to dyspnea, caused by a large cyst localized at the base of the tongue during an upper respiratory tract infection. Before surgery, biochemical examinations, diagnostic imaging were performed to exclude ectopic thyroid tissue. Surgery was performed applying Sistrunk’s procedure, which entailed excising the cyst’s tissue at its origin. Conclusion. In patients presenting with thyroglossal duct cysts, upper respiratory tract infections increase the probability of discovering previously existing cysts. A cyst localized around the foramen cecum can cause inspiratory and expiratory dyspnea.

The aim of the research was to evaluate the feasibility of measuring the bone conduction hearing threshold using self-administered mobile audiometry. A single-centre, closed, cross-over trial was carried out on patients from the ENT Department. A mobile-based, self-administered, audiologist-assisted assessment of the bone conduction hearing threshold was carried out by means of the open-access, freeware app Hearing Test using two types of bone conduction headphones: professional B71 bone transducer and commercially available AfterShokz Openmove open-ear headphones. Seventy-seven ears. A test-retest examination revealed the lowest standard deviation for open-ear headphones at 3.33 dB (95% CI 2.92–3.79). When compared with pure tone audiometry, the intraclass correlations of 0.95 (95% CI 0.94–0.96) and 0.90 (95% CI 0.88–0.92) were obtained for the bone transducer and for the open-ear headphones, indicating excellent and good reliability, respectively. However, the regression slope of 0.67 was found for the air-bone gap when using open ear headphones, which was significantly different from 1 (p < 0.001). Open-ear headphones provide an alternative for estimating bone conduction once the air-bone gap has been adjusted by a factor of 1/0.6 7 ≅1.5. They demonstrate improved reproducibility over the bone transducer and are much easier to use with a mobile device. Trial Registration: Wroclaw Medical University, Science Support Centre, BW60/2020 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anomalies of the internal carotid artery (ICA) can increase the risk of haemorrhage during common surgical procedures. The aim of this literature review was to summarize the current state of knowledge on the course of the internal carotid artery in the parapharyngeal space, including the impact of the patient characteristics on the distances between the artery and other anatomical structures, as well as symptoms accompanying the aberrations. Pathologies related to the course of ICA in the parapharyngeal space are common (10--60% in the general population and up to 84.4% in the elderly). In women, the distances in the oropharynx area are shorter than in men. Although the number of morphological studies is growing, providing more information on this topic, the identified studies differ in the methods and results. Knowledge on the variability in the course of ICA can help identify patients at high risk for the ICA trauma during pharyngeal procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The focus on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in medical research is becoming more and more intensive, with attention being paid to the patient's subjective feelings and assessment of one's health status. Smell disorders can significantly impact human life. The Questionnaire of Olfactory Disorders (QOD) is a self-monitoring questionnaire that provides subjective information about olfactory disorders. Objectives. This study aimed to check the reliability and validation of the Polish version of QOD (QOD-PL) for use in patients with olfactory impairment in Poland. Materials and methods. A total of 158 patients (76 females, mean age (Mage) 45.97 ±16.37 years), suffering from chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), whose olfactory function was measured using the Sniffin' Sticks test (SST), were studied. All patients completed 3 validated questionnaires: Importance of Olfaction (IO), Sino-Nasal Outcome Test-22 (SNOT-22) and QOD-PL. Results. Internal consistency and test-retest reliability of the entire QOD-PL scale were good (Cronbach's a = 0.88). The convergent validity of the QOD-PL and its subscales correlated with IO and SNOT-22. The life quality statements in the QOD-PL (QOD-PL-LQ) score, its negative statements, and the mean score for VAS scales were significantly and positively correlated with all symptoms measured with SNOT-22 and none of the IO scales. Conclusions. The QOD-PL is a reliable, valid and important tool for assessing HRQOL in patients with olfactory disorders. However, it is important to note that not all of its subscales can be considered and interpreted separately. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction/Objective. Assessment of the Quality-of-life questionnaires was filled out before and after surgery by patients with laryngeal cancer hospitalized in the Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery Department, qualified for surgical treatment. Methods. Fifty-four patients with laryngeal cancer in T3 and T4 stages who were qualified for total laryngectomy were asked to fill out the EORTC QLQ-30 and H&N30 modules before and a few years after surgical treatment. Results. The quality of life of the hospitalized patients increased after surgery. The level of pain after surgery decreased and was statistically significant (p = 0.025). In the study group, 90.6% of patients survived five years after surgery. Conclusion. The quality of life in patients with laryngeal cancer improved in the domain of pain. Further research should be conducted on a larger group of patients. Future results could provide useful material for analysis regarding the benefits for the patient that may be relevant to a decision to consent to the proposed treatment and the choice of its type.

Exposure to particulate matter is an important risk factor for mental health disturbances and overall mortality. However, the knowledge on relationship between long-term particulate matter level and suicide rate is limited and requires in-depth study. Population and air pollution data were obtained from the Polish Central Statistics Office and Chief Inspectorate of Environmental Protection for the period 2014–2015. Aspatial multivariate and one factor regression analysis were performed and followed by spatial global regression analysis for district reference units in geographic information system (GIS). At the district level of aggregation, data showed spatial stationarity. The best-fitting spatial global model was based on number of disorders caused by the use of psychoactive substances, number of people treated in psychiatric hospitals, population density, unemployment rate and per capita income. Global spatial model with PM2.5 level parameter was an improvement over the one without it (adj. R2 = 0.87 compared to adj. R2 = 0.83). There is a positive relationship between particular matter concentrations and suicides in Poland. Application of Geographic Information Science analytical functions in medicine can be viewed as a new efficient methodological approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]