BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Dextranomer/hyaluronic acid copolymer implants are used in treating velopharyngeal insufficiency. These posterior nasopharyngeal implants can be mistaken for pathologic conditions such as retropharyngeal abscess on imaging. We studied the imaging appearance of dextranomer/hyaluronic acid copolymer implants in patients treated for velopharyngeal insufficiency. MATERIALS ...

BACKGROUND In patients with sleep apnoea, primary oropharyngeal collapse of the upper airway during sleep is an important predictor of treatment success with an oral appliance. Phrenic nerve stimulation is able to induce upper airway obstruction and was therefore used to mimic the target for an efficient treatment with an oral appliance. OBJECTIVE To test if the site(s) of upper airway collap...

BACKGROUND Sphincter pharyngoplasty (SP) appears to be the more "physiologic" surgical technique to treat velopharyngeal incompetence (VPI). This procedure creates a dynamic sphincter of variable diameter and keeps the flexibility of the soft palate. SP also induces velopharyngeal size reduction, mainly in the transverse diameter, which may cause upper airway (UA) occlusions during sleep. AIM...

BACKGROUND One of the most controversial topics concerning cleft palate is the diagnosis and treatment of velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI). OBJECTIVE This paper reviews current genetic aspects of cleft palate, imaging diagnosis of VPI, the planning of operations for restoring velopharyngeal function during speech, and strategies for speech pathology treatment of articulation disorders in pa...

1Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Missouri; 2Fontbonne University, St Louis, Missouri, USA Correspondence: Dr Arshad R Muzaffar, Division of Plastic Surgery, University of Missouri, One Hospital Drive, Columbia, Missouri 65212, USA. Telephone 573-882-2275, fax 573-884-4788, e-mail [email protected] Sphincter pharyngoplasty has shown time-tested results as a surgical treatment for...

Anatomic abnormalities of the pharynx are thought to play a role in the pathogenesis of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), but their contribution has never been conclusively proven. The present study tested this anatomic hypothesis by comparing the mechanics of the paralyzed pharynx in OSA patients and in normal subjects. According to evaluation of sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) by nocturnal oxim...