Objective of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of adenoidectomy for children, to asses the rates of adenoidal regrowth and find out if the regrowth of adenoidal tissue affects persistent nasal symptoms post-surgery. A prospective study was carried out in the period of 2005-2007. The inclusion criteria for patients in the study were hypertrophic adenoid tissue and moderate or severe persistent nasal obstruction. One hundred and fifty children had undergone an adenoidectomy using consistent technique and visual control. Medium-term follow-up results were conducted 12-24 months (the mean follow-up period was 17.1 months) post-surgery, performing transnasal fibroscopy and completing the questionnaire. A total of 104 (69.3%) out of 150 patients polled. Children's parents answered the questions that were used for the subjective assessment of symptoms and to ascertain the history of the patient's nasal obstruction and upper respiratory tract infection prior to surgery. The age range was from 3 to 15, of which, 68 (65.3%) of them had undergone a transnasal fibroscopy. There was a significant reduction in symptoms that were displayed by children prior to the operation: there were 5.8% patients with nasal obstruction after the surgery, while incidences of upper airway infections dropped from 79.8 to 7.7% after surgery (P < 0.001). Eighty-six (82.7%) parents considered their child's well-being as "having improved" and they were "satisfied" with the results. Transnasal fibroscopy examinations identified some regrowth of adenoidal tissue in 13 cases (19.1%), with only 3 cases demonstrating adenoidal regrowth to grade 1. Adenoidal regrowth was correlative with the age of the patients (P = 0.048) and to numerous postoperative treatment with antibiotics (P = 0.032). Adenoids rarely regrow after surgery and where there were traces of adenoidal tissue, it did not manifest clinically. Nasal obstruction after the adenoidectomy is rhinogenic origin, not the cause of enlarged adenoids. Adenoidal regrowth more often occurs in children younger than five years old and in those patients who were treated postoperatively with antibiotics on numerous occasions.

Psychological factors have been described as important for tinnitus severity, but attempts to incorporate them in one picture are sparse. This study investigated to what extent traits (personality), states (depressive and anxiety symptoms), sociodemographic factors and questioning environment influence tinnitus severity perception and how they interplay. Data were obtained from 212 subjects in a survey that was undertaken in 2016 at Vilnius University hospital and via internet. Measures included the Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Big Five Personality Dimensions Scale and sociodemographic questions. A series of stepwise forward and multiple regression analyses were undertaken to discover how factors interconnect. Female gender, age, living in rural area, but not level of education, were found to be associated with THI and HADS. Total HADS score and of both subscales were linked to scores on THI, VAS scales and all personality traits, except agreeableness (and consciousness for anxiety). Anxiety was the most important predictor for tinnitus severity, followed by depressive symptoms. Only neuroticism from personality dimensions was a predictor of THI score, whereas THI scores did not predict scores on neuroticism. All results in scales were higher in the internet group, except agreeableness and neuroticism, while extroversion correlated negatively with THI score only in the hospital group. Tinnitus severity was highly correlated with depressive, anxiety symptoms and neuroticism. Respondents recruited through internet had higher scores on most parameters. Results emphasize the importance of psychological factors in tinnitus management.

BackgroundOver 1 billion people suffer from chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, COPD, rhinitis and rhinosinusitis. They cause an enormous burden and are considered as major non-communicable diseases. Many patients are still uncontrolled and the cost of inaction is unacceptable. A meeting was held in Vilnius, Lithuania (March 23, 2018) under the patronage of the Ministry of Health and several scientific societies to propose multisectoral care pathways embedding guided self-management, mHealth and air pollution in selected chronic respiratory diseases (rhinitis, chronic rhinosinusitis, asthma and COPD). The meeting resulted in the Vilnius Declaration that was developed by the participants of the EU Summit on chronic respiratory diseases under the leadership of Euforea.ConclusionThe Vilnius Declaration represents an important step for the fight against air pollution in chronic respiratory diseases globally and has a clear strategic relevance with regard to the EU Health Strategy as it will bring added value to the existing public health knowledge.

Background. Cochlear implantation (CI) is the main treatment method for deaf children. CI influences not only communication, but also psychosocial outcomes in children with severe to profound hearing loss. Focusing on issues specific to CI (e.g., self-reliance, social relations, education) may provide a more accurate and relative view of functional status of paediatric cochlear implant users. The objectives of this study were to translate into Lithuanian and adapt an international questionnaire of the quality of life after cochlear implantation and to evaluate parental perspectives regarding CI and the child’s progress after a minimum of two years after surgery. Materials and methods. The parental questionnaire The Children with Cochlear Implants: Parental Perspectives CCIPP was used to evaluate the quality of life following cochlear implantation. The questionnaire includes 74 items covering two main domains: decision-making (26 items) and the outcomes of implantation (48 items). Quality of life is estimated according to the scores of eight sub-domains: communication, general functioning, well-being, self-reliance, social relations, education, effects of implantation, and supporting the child. Results. The paediatric sample consisted of 11 (39%) girls and 17 (61%) boys, whose mean age at the time of cochlear implantation was 2.41 ± 2.25 years, mean duration of the implant use 3.7 ± 1.3 years. All the grand means in the outcomes of implantation domain exceeded 3 on the 5-point scale, meaning that parents viewed the quality of life of their children as either average or better. Parents rated the sub-domains of communication (3.90 ± 0.77 points), social relations (4.05 ± 0.41), and supporting the child (3.89 ± 0.49) most positively. Conclusions. According to parents, the quality of life improves after the cochlear implantation, especially in the fields of communication, social relations and supporting the child.

ABSTRACT.Purpose: To evaluate the changes of peripapillary and subfoveal choroidal thickness (CT) after trabeculectomy. Methods: Prospective longitudinal study included 37 eyes with open-angle glaucoma. The subfoveal and peripapillary CT was measured using enhanced depth imaging spectral domain optical coherence tomography before trabeculectomy and 1 week, 3 and 6 months postoperatively. The associations between changes in the CT, intraocular pressure (IOP) and axial length were analysed. Results: The medium subfoveal CT (IQR) increased from 182 (97) lm at baseline to 267 (107) lm 1 week, 213 (97) lm 3 months and 207 (91) lm 6 months postoperatively (p < 0.001). The peripapillary CT increased in all four quadrants at all follow-ups (p < 0.05). The subfoveal and peripapillary choroidal thickening correlated with the magnitude of IOP reduction (p < 0.05) and axial length shortening (p < 0.01) during whole follow-up period. There was a peripapillary CT increase of 2.9 lm per mmHg of IOP reduction (p < 0.001, CI 1.5-4.4) and 4.8 lm per mm of baseline axial length (p = 0.049, CI 0.03-9.6) 1 week postoperatively after adjustment for baseline IOP. Six months postoperatively, the decrease in axial length was the only factor associated with peripapillary choroidal thickening (p = 0.031; regression coefficient: 73.29 lm/mm, CI 7.1-139.5). Conclusion: Intraocular pressure (IOP) reduction after trabeculectomy caused the increase in subfoveal and peripapillary CT for at least 6 months postoperatively correlating with greater IOP reduction and axial length shortening. In the long term, the decrease in axial eye length, but not IOP, was the only factor to be associated with peripapillary choroidal thickening.