To determine the efficacy of intracapsular tonsillectomy using low-temperature plasma excision for improving the quality of the postoperative experience and for treating obstructive symptoms through 12 months postoperatively.

Objective/Hypothesis: To quantitatively evaluate the long-term impact of sinus surgery on paranasal sinus development in the pediatric patient. Study Design: Longitudinal review of eight pediatric patients treated with unilateral sinus surgery for periorbital or orbital cellulitis with an average follow-up of 6.9 years. Control subjects consisted of two groups, 9 normal adult patients with no computed tomographic evidence of sinusitis and 10 adult patients with scans consistent with sinusitis and a history of sinus-related symptoms extending to childhood. Methods: Application of computed tomography (CT) volumetrics, a technique allowing for precise calculation of volumes using thinly cut CT images, to the study and control groups. Results: Paired Student t test analyses of side-to-side volume comparisons in the normal patients, patients with sinusitis, and patients who had surgery revealed no statistically significant differences. Comparisons between the orbital volumes of patients who did and did not have surgery revealed a statistically significant increase in orbital volume in patients who had surgery. Conclusions: Only minimal changes in facial volume measurements have been found, confirming clinical impressions that sinus surgery in children is safe and without significant cosmetic sequelae.

In light of recent events, anthrax has once again taken center stage in the world of science and the world in which we live. Because patients with anthrax may initially present to otolaryngology clinics, it is important for the otolaryngologist to know how to diagnose and treat this entity. This article will present current information on epidemiology, microbiology, pathogenesis/clinical manifestations, diagnosis, and treatment with a particular interest in the head and neck region.