COVID-19-related chemosensory changes: Findings from a prospective national database.

Objective: The aim of this study was to review findings from a large prospective national database of chemosensory disturbances associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection.

Data Sources: The Virginia Commonwealth University Smell and Taste Center national database of COVID-19 chemosensory disturbances.

Methods: A series of online surveys, first opened on April 10, 2020, was made accessible nationwide to any adult with sudden chemosensory dysfunction since January 2020.

COVID-19-Associated Chemosensory Loss Continues to Decline.

Chemosensory losses have long been considered a cardinal symptom of COVID-19 infection. Recent studies have shown changing symptom profiles with COVID-19, including decreasing incidence of olfactory losses. We accessed the National COVID Cohort Collaborative database to identify patients with and without smell and taste loss within 2 weeks of COVID-19 diagnosis.

Comparison of readmission and complication rates between traditional sleep surgery and hypoglossal nerve stimulation.

Objective: This study aims to compare readmission and complication rates between hypoglossal nerve stimulation (HNS) and traditional sleep surgery (TSS) in the 90-day postoperative period using a federated electronic health record (EHR) database.

Methods: We queried TriNetX, a global federated health research network providing access to EHR data from approximately 70 million patients in 49 large health care organizations to identify individuals who underwent either HNS or TSS for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) from April 2014 to March 2021. Propensity scores based on demographics and obesity were used to balance groups.

Recovery from Covid-19 smell loss: Two-years of follow up.

Objective: To report long-term patterns of recovery and non-recovery in a large nationwide cohort of subjects with COVID-19 associated smell loss.

Study Design: Prospectively, longitudinal questionnaires.

Setting: Web-based national survey.

Decreasing Incidence of Chemosensory Changes by COVID-19 Variant.

Anecdotal clinical observation suggests that rates of chemosensory dysfunction associated with COVID-19 infection may be decreasing. To investigate, the National COVID Cohort Collaborative database was queried for all patients with and without smell and taste loss within 2 weeks of COVID-19 diagnosis. Six-week periods of peak variant prevalence were selected by using CoVariants.

International consensus statement on allergy and rhinology: Olfaction.

Background: The literature regarding clinical olfaction, olfactory loss, and olfactory dysfunction has expanded rapidly over the past two decades, with an exponential rise in the past year. There is substantial variability in the quality of this literature and a need to consolidate and critically review the evidence. It is with that aim that we have gathered experts from around the world to produce this International Consensus on Allergy and Rhinology: Olfaction (ICAR:O).

Predictors of smell recovery in a nationwide prospective cohort of patients with COVID-19.

Objective: To determine which factors (demographic, symptoms, comorbidities, and treatments) are associated with recovery of smell in patients with COVID-19 associated olfactory loss.

Study Design: Prospective, longitudinal questionnaires.

Setting: National survey.

Quality of life and safety impact of COVID-19 associated smell and taste disturbances.

Objective: The association between COVID-19 and chemosensory loss has garnered substantial attention, however to date little is known about the real-life consequences of impairment in this unique patient population. The aim of this study is to evaluate the quality of life (QOL) and personal safety deficits experienced by patients with COVID-19 infection.

Study Design: Prospective, longitudinal questionnaires.

Epithelioid Sarcoma of the Tongue: An Unusual Tumor Mimic for Squamous Cell Carcinoma.

Introduction: Epithelioid sarcoma is a rare soft tissue malignancy that usually presents in the distal extremities along fascial planes, aponeuroses or tendon sheaths. Very rarely, it presents as a primary or metastatic lesion of the head neck.

Methods: Chart review and comprehensive literature review using PubMed and Google Scholar.

Subjective smell and taste changes during the COVID-19 pandemic: Short term recovery.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, many individuals have reported acute loss of smell and taste. In order to better characterize all patients with these symptoms, a longitudinal national survey was created. Since April 10, 2020, 549 completed the initial survey, with 295 completing 14-day, and 202 completing 1-month follow up surveys.

Subjective Changes in Smell and Taste During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A National Survey-Preliminary Results.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, many individuals have noted acute loss of smell and/or taste, although not all patients with these symptoms are tested for COVID-19. To better characterize all patients with these rare symptoms, a national survey was created. Over 13 days in April 2020, a total of 220 people completed the survey in its entirety, representing a wide geographic distribution across the United States.

Prevalence of carotid stenosis following radiotherapy for head and neck cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Radiation to the head and neck is a well-established risk factor for the development of carotid artery stenosis. Our objective was to identify the prevalence, incidence, and degree of carotid stenosis in patients with a history of head and neck irradiation.

Methods: This study was performed according to the PRISMA guidelines.

Impact of Sinus Surgery on Hospital Utilization for Complications of Sinusitis.

Background: Sinusitis complications are potentially lethal conditions that generally require extensive treatment and thus place a significant burden on the health-care system. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of surgery on hospital utilization associated with treatment of sinusitis complications.

Methods: Retrospective cohort study using a national hospital database.

Destructive lesion of the temporomandibular joint: A case of tophaceous pseudogout.

Tophaceous pseudogout of the temporomandibular joint is a rare entity that clinically and radiographically mimics neoplastic or infectious conditions. Diagnosis requires histopathologic examination. Given the rarity of this condition, there is a paucity of information pertaining to the surgical approach, reconstructive options, and postoperative outcomes.

Etiology of subjective taste loss.

Background: Taste complaints are commonly encountered in clinical practice. Although changes in taste function may arise from varied etiologies, numerous other factors may impact patients' taste perceptions, the most common of which is olfactory dysfunction. Thus, patients with taste complaints may or may not have measurable deficits in taste function.

The Burden of Sinusitis in Hematologic Transplant Patients: A National Perspective.

Objectives/hypothesis: To determine the impact of sinusitis on outcomes of hematologic transplant procedures.

Study Design: Retrospective analysis of a national hospital database.

Methods: The National Inpatient Sample database for 2012 to 2013 was queried using International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes to identify patients undergoing hematologic transplants.

Head trauma and olfactory function.

Olfactory impairment is a well-established sequela of head injury. The presence and degree of olfactory dysfunction is dependent on severity of head trauma, duration of posttraumatic amnesia, injuries obtained, and as more recently established, age. Deficits in smell can be conductive or neurosensory, contingent on location of injury.

Elimination of pain improves specificity of clinical diagnostic criteria for adult chronic rhinosinusitis.

Objective: Determine whether the elimination of pain improves accuracy of clinical diagnostic criteria for adult chronic rhinosinusitis.

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Methods: History, symptoms, nasal endoscopy, and computed tomography (CT) results were analyzed for 1,186 adults referred to an academic otolaryngology clinic with presumptive diagnosis of chronic rhinosinusitis.

Effectiveness of critical care pathways for head and neck cancer surgery: A systematic review.

Background: Critical care pathways (CCPs) are implemented within health care systems as a means to systematically decrease resource utilization, whereas maintaining a high level of care for patients with a specific diagnosis. Previous studies have shown equivocal results for CCPs in head and neck cancer surgery.

Methods: We conducted a systematic review evaluating studies of CCPs for head and neck cancer surgery, with individual outcome measures analyzed separately to describe the effect of each implemented pathway.

An unusual case of schwannomatosis with bilateral maxillary sinus schwannomas and a novel SMARCB1 gene mutation.

Schwannomas are benign tumors that arise from Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system. Patients with multiple schwannomas without signs and symptoms of neurofibromatosis Type 1 or 2 have the rare disease schwannomatosis. Tumors in these patients occur along peripheral nerves throughout the body.

Risk factors for hazardous events in olfactory-impaired patients.

Importance: Normal olfaction provides essential cues to allow early detection and avoidance of potentially hazardous situations. Thus, patients with impaired olfaction may be at increased risk of experiencing certain hazardous events such as cooking or house fires, delayed detection of gas leaks, and exposure to or ingestion of toxic substances.

Objective: To identify risk factors and potential trends over time in olfactory-related hazardous events in patients with impaired olfactory function.

Attainment of surgical competence in otolaryngology training.

Objectives/hypothesis: Our aim was to determine the postgraduate year (PGY) of residency at which residents achieve competence in key otolaryngologic procedures as perceived by residents and program directors (PDs), determine resident or programmatic factors affecting PGY at which residents perceive attainment of competence, and evaluate the relationship between resident and PD perceptions for attainment of competence in these procedures.

Study Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Methods: We surveyed residents and PDs in US otolaryngology residencies in 2011 using SurveyMonkey.

Chronic facial pain and Meckel cave masses as the initial presentation of neurosarcoidosis: a case report.

Sarcoidosis is a systemic inflammatory disease that can affect virtually every organ system, leading to a wide variety of clinical manifestations. Central nervous system involvement producing neurologic symptoms can occur in patients with sarcoidosis, yet rarely are these symptoms the initial manifestations of the disease. Here we present the case of a 38-year-old man who presented with a history of chronic facial pain, blurred vision, increased lacrimation, and periodontal abscesses.

Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy site metastasis from head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: case series and literature review.

Objectives: To present our experience with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) seeding of percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) sites and to review all reported cases to identify risk factors and develop strategies for complication avoidance.

Materials And Methods: The records of 4 patients with PEG site metastasis from HNSCC were identified from the authors' institution. Thirty-eight further cases were reviewed following a PubMed search and evaluation of references in pertinent articles.

Delayed lower cranial neuropathies following primary radiotherapy for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.

Delayed lower cranial neuropathy is a rare complication following primary radiotherapy for head and neck cancer, and has been most associated with nasopharyngeal carcinoma with minimal data regarding this outcome in the treatment of the oropharynx. No reports, to the authors' knowledge, have described this complication following intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) for oropharyngeal primaries. Once encountered, this adverse outcome can have serious impacts on speech and swallowing.