Bilateral vocal fold paralysis presents as their complete or partial immobilisation. The median or paramedian position of vocal folds contributes to the narrowing of the airway at the level of the glottis and manifests as inspiratory dyspnoea. For many years iatrogenic injury of recurrent laryngeal nerves during thyroidectomy has been viewed as the most common underlying reason. It is very often a lifethreatening condition requiring not only corticosteroid administration and intubation, which only constitute a short-term symptomatic therapy, but also surgical intervention, including tracheostomy. The most common surgical methods implemented in bilateral vocal fold paralysis include posterior cordectomy, arytenoidectomy, and, more and more commonly, re-innervation. Other techniques used in restoring airway patency include laterofixation, botulinum toxin injection, and laryngeal stimulation, which is still under research. Stem cell and gene therapy are also being researched. Notably, the main purpose of surgical treatment is the provision of airway patency with the preservation of the phonatory and protective functions of the larynx.

Background. The microvascular free tissue transfer enabled the reconstruction of complex head and neck defects. The aim of the study was to assess the results of treatment of patients undergoing reconstructive surgery and to identify factors affecting these results, with particular reference to the patient's age. Methods. All patients who underwent free-flap head and neck reconstruction in our institution between 2010 and 2017 were included in this retrospective study. A series of 66 patients met inclusion criteria and were divided into 2 age groups: group G1 aged <65 years (n = 41) and group G2 aged ≥65 years (n = 25). The minor local complications and general complications as well as comorbidities were analyzed. Results. No correlation was found between advanced age and the risk of free flap failure as well as with incidence of local minor complications. General complications were more frequent in the group G2 (32%) than in the group G1 (19.5%), although this is not statistically significant difference. A statistically significant difference was found between age and the patient's health status determined according to ASA (p = 0.010). In the younger low-risk group, 12 (29.3%) had general and local complications, while in the older low-risk group only 1 (4%) of the patient. In 5 (12.2%) high risk G1 patients there were general and local complications, and in 7 (28%) high risk G2 patients.

No abstract

Renal cell carcinoma accounts for about 2-3% of all malignancies. It is characterized by a high frequency of metastases, which are most often observed in the lungs, bones, liver, brain and regional lymph nodes. Literature highlights the rare occurrence of renal cancer metastases to the head and neck, even though it is the third most common cancer that metastasizes to the head and neck.Below we present a case report of metastases of clear cell carcinoma from a kidney to the organs of the head and neck. The analysis was carried out retrospectively based on medical records of a patient hospitalized at the Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery of the Medical University of Warsaw in the years 2009-2019. We describe an 81-year-old man after left-sided nephrectomy due to clear cell carcinoma, with numerous distant metastases, who was diagnosed with metastases to the left submandibular salivary gland 8 years after primary surgery, followed by a diagnosis of metastasis to the right submandibular salivary gland 3 years later. The patient underwent 2 radical procedures to remove the submandibular salivary glands. Due to the presence of lung metastases, treatment with a tyrosine kinase inhibitor was also implemented.

Tumors of the head and neck region form a heterogeneous group of pathologies, including various benign lesions and malignant neoplasms. Endoglin, also known as CD105, is an accessory receptor for transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), that regulates angiogenesis, both under physiological and pathological conditions. It is highly expressed in proliferating endothelial cells. Therefore, it is considered as a marker of tumor-related angiogenesis. In this review we discuss the role of endoglin as a possible marker of carcinogenesis, as well as a potential target for antibody-based therapies in the neoplasms of the head and neck region.