Elevated NLR could be an inflammatory marker to distinguish low- from high-grade malignant parotid gland tumors.

The etiology of tympanosclerosis (TS) is not known, but TS commonly develops secondary to acute and chronic otitis media (COM). Since calcification process in TS resembles that of atherosclerosis (AS), pathogens that are related to pathogenesis of AS may be involved in development of TS. This prospective and controlled study, performed at a tertiary referral center, investigated a possible relationship between the presence of Chlamydia (C.) pneumoniae and Helicobacter (H.) pylori and the development of a tympanosclerotic plaque. The presence of C. pneumoniae was examined in the surgical specimens of 62 patients (29 females and 33 males; age range 10-70 years, mean age 30.8 ± 13.3 years), including 30 patients with TS, 14 patients with cholesteatoma, and 18 patients with chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM). The presence of H. pylori was examined in the surgical specimens of 88 patients (41 females and 47 males; age range 6-70 years, mean age 32.5 ± 14.8 years), including 35 patients with TS, 22 patients with cholesteatoma, 20 patients with CSOM, and 11 patients with otosclerosis. Tympanosclerotic plaques and control specimens from the cholesteatoma, polypoid mucosa, or mucosal portion of the perforations and stapes supra structure were examined for the presence of H. pylori and/or C. pneumoniae using real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis. The analysis demonstrated that specimens from the tympanosclerotic plaques and the other types of COM were all negative for C. pneumoniae and H. pylori. An association between C. pneumoniae or H. pylori infection and the development of TS or other types of COM could not be established.

ENS is as successful as the OTS in management difficult septal deviation cases. In patients with severe septal deformities type of the surgical technique should be selected according to the surgeon's experience and the patient's preference.

No abstract

Polymyositis (PM) is an autoimmune disease progressing in the form of a break down of the muscles that is induced by chronic inflammation in skeletal muscles. Muscle weakness is painless and concentrates on proximal muscles, involving the pectoral and pelvic girdle. If the disease is not treated properly, it may progress and lead to a considerable decrease in the quality of life. Its conventional treatment involves drugs that suppress inflammation such as steroids, methotrexate, azathioprine, and intravenous immunoglobulin. However, conventional treatment may prove insufficient to halt the progression of the disease and offer only a limited improvement because of the adverse effects it causes in some patients. In this article, we present a 48-year-old female patient diagnosed with PM nearly 13 years ago that did not sufficiently respond to the pharmaceutical agents that were indicated for the conventional treatment of the disease and developed femoral head avascular necrosis because of the treatment and was, in the end, successfully treated with abatacept monotherapy at our clinic.