Faculty Bibliography

Because the chin, like the nose, occupies a prominent position in the face, it must also be assessed in planning any changes in the facial profile. For example, a large nose associated with a microgenia does not appear as large when the chin is augmented. A chin increased in the vertical dimension confers an excessively long appearance to the face. Finally, a microgenia is associated with the stereotype of a sluggish personality, and a large chin in women connotes a masculine personality. The authors provide guidelines for assessing these variables and including them in surgical plan

The use of High-Frequency Pulsed Doppler Ultrasound (HFPDU) for evaluation of microvascular hemodynamics is well established. Due to technical limitations of existing probes, quantitation of anastomotic stenoses and detailed waveform analyses are difficult to perform and impractical for clinical use. We present a new Tandem Doppler Probe (TDP) for simple and accurate study of blood flow in vessels smaller than 1 mm in diameter. Its unique ability to compare the pre- and post-anastomotic waveforms simultaneously allows for quantitative detection of anastomotic narrowing of as little as 5%, as well as identification of subtle pathologic anastomotic waveform changes not seen with single probes. Such early and precise delineation of anastomotic problems in the operating room can provide an invaluable, objective assessment of the technical adequacy of the anastomoses as well as an important baseline for later post-operative monitoring of free-tissue transfers with implantable Doppler devices

Two cases of aplasia cutis congenita with associated bony defects are presented to highlight the dangers of delayed coverage of exposed dura. Management of one case was complicated by repeated local and systemic sepsis and the other by repeated, life-threatening hemorrhage. Early, definitive coverage of these defects using full thickness skin flaps avoids the risks of hemorrhage and should, if the recipient bed is clean, lessen the incidence of complicating sepsis

The clinical course of 312 consecutive patients after initial presentation with metastatic melanoma, 165 of whom presented with regional metastases at cutaneous or subcutaneous, or both, nodal sites and 147 with metastases at distant sites, was reviewed. The five year survival rate for regional metastases was 43.4 per cent compared with a five year survival rate for distant metastases of 4.9 per cent (p less than 0.0001). Favorable prognostic variables for survival from first regional metastases included primary melanoma sites on the extremities compared with the head, neck and trunk (p = 0.043) and a disease-free interval of more than one year from primary surgical treatment to regional metastases (p = 0.0058). Favorable prognostic variables for survival from the first distant metastasis included a disease-free interval of more than one year from primary surgical treatment to distant metastases (p = 0.0092), the type of resection of metastatic disease (p = 0.00027) and the addition of systemic immunotherapy (p = 0.0011). Forty-nine patients with totally resectable distant metastases had a five year survival rate from the treatment of the initial metastasis of 13.1 per cent, whereas 33 patients having palliative resections had a five year survival rate of 7.5 per cent. All 165 patients who did not have resection for distant metastases died within five years. The results of our experience support therapeutic efforts to ablate both regional and distant metastases of malignant melanoma when feasible

A method for generating three-dimensional landmark locations from routine biplane pairs of cephalograms was previously introduced. In this article we compare the locations thus reconstructed to the same configurations as directly recorded through a redundant network of interpoint distances measured with calipers. Six mandibular landmarks were located by both methods on each of 10 dry skulls. With the caliper distances is associated a standard error that can be estimated without explicit remeasurement by the method of 'adjustment of networks' familiar from surveying. These standard errors are consistent with the remeasurement error both of the caliper measurements and of the stereolocation from cephalograms; the methods appear to have the same precision, about 0.4 mm per distance. The bias (systematic shift) of the biplane reconstructions with respect to the points used for laying down the calipers may be estimated by regressions of distance discrepancies on the direction cosines of the separations between pairs of landmarks. The caliper tips placed condylion approximately 10 mm medially and a bit forward of where we chose to reconstruct it from biplane cephalograms. The caliper locations of gonion average about 1.6 mm back of their cephalometric position, while those at menton and lower incisal edge are forward by some 1.4 mm. We conclude that the biplane reconstruction (the 'three-dimensional cephalogram') is sufficiently accurate for routine clinical and surgical application

The fidelity of visualizing craniofacial features using two modern three-dimensional (3D) imaging algorithms - one employing surface and the other volume rendering - are compared. Each rendering technique was evaluated for its ability to display closed cranial sutures, loss of thin bone through partial volume averaging, and the presence of artifacts. Linear measurements of the orbits, foramina, and mounting holes were taken on the 3D renderings and compared with direct measurements. Both techniques visualized the closed cranial sutures, orbits, mandibles, and teeth. The errors in linear measurement averaged less than 1.5 mm (root mean square) and were not statistically different between the two techniques. Errors are attributable to uncertainty in locating edges due to partial transparency (volume rendering) and sub- optimal lighting. Both rendering techniques suffer from step pattern and thin bone artifacts. We conclude that an algorithm for surface construction can provide detailed and accurate representation of the craniofacial anatomy

Percutaneous endoscopic approaches to cholelithiasis are an alternative to extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy which offer advantages of fewer restrictions on stone size and type as well as avoidance of fragmented stone passage complications. Endoscopic techniques would be facilitated by methods of welding gallbladder tissues. The technical constraints imposed by the endoscopic approach favor nonsuture methods of fusing gallbladder tissues. To evaluate a laser method for fusing biliary tissue, we have compared the healing response of laser-welded versus polyglycolic acid suture-closed incisions in canine gallbladder tissue in vivo. The laser used was a thulium-holmium-chromium:YAG laser producing 200-microsecond, 300-millijoule pulses at 2.15 microns. Serial sacrifice of dogs that underwent laser or suture closure of incisions made in the fundus of the gallbladder revealed that all repairs healed without evidence of leakage or infection. Laser-welded cholecystotomy sites had complete fibrous healing of the wound by two weeks postoperatively and reepithelialization by three weeks after operation. Suture-closed wounds were still without complete epithelization four weeks after the procedure. Laser welding may be a useful technique in endoscopic biliary surgery

This report proposes that reflex sympathetic dystrophy be defined as a pain syndrome in which the pain is accompanied by loss of function and evidence of autonomic dysfunction. In the clinical setting, this diagnosis is usually associated with other anatomic and psychological diagnoses and may be associated with a variety of systemic illnesses and medicolegal factors. All components should be assessed before a treatment plan is established. Priorities should go to emergency care, acute injuries, and systemic illness, psychiatric problems, and chronic anatomic problems, in that order. Early, accurate diagnosis improves prognosis