Melanoma is a malignant neoplasm of the epidermal melanocytes. Awareness and early recognition of pigmented lesion inside oral cavity helps in initial diagnosis and further investigation and treatment. Oral malignant melanoma is a rare aggressive neoplasm commonly seen among middle age. The diagnosis of melanoma initiates from the pre-existing pigmented lesions. The poor prognosis of oral melanomas requires that pigmented lesions of undetermined origin be routinely biopsied. A case of malignant melanoma of hard palate with its clinical, radiological and histopathological presentation along with brief review is presented. Prognosis of these lesion is poor with survival rate of 5 years.

Direct laryngoscopy is most widely used method of oro-tracheal intubation but at times it could be difficult, and may lead to adverse effect on cardiovascular system. Video laryngoscopy in contrast provides better visualisation of airway making oro-tracheal intubation easy. The aim of this study was to prospectively compare the use of Video laryngoscope (Glidescope) versus the direct (Macintosch) laryngoscope blade for routine airway management Materials and Methods: A prospective randomised comparative study was done by randomly allocating patients undergoing elective surgery to one of two Groups comprising 50 patients in each as: Group Iindirect laryngoscope (Video) and Group D-Direct (Macintosh) laryngoscope. After induction patients were intubated according to group allotted. Ease of intubation and other haemodynamic parameters were recorded at numerous intervals as follow: baseline, after induction of anaesthesia, one and five minutes after intubation. Results: Time required for the laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation in Group I i.e. indirect (18.50 seconds) was more as compared to Group D direct (11.76 seconds) with statistical significance. The Group I procedure significantly reduced tracheal intubation difficulty score and the ease of intubation was statistically insignificant as compared to that of Group D. It was found that there was a significantly better Modified Cormack Lehane Grade in Group I(100%) as compared to Group D(65%). Conclusion: Video laryngoscopy (Glidescope) is considered advantageous over conventional direct laryngoscope (Macintosh) in terms of lower intubation difficulty score (IDS), better ease of intubation and lower grades of Modified Cormack Lehane Grade with indirect laryngoscopy). It can be used as a teaching tool for novice intubators and offers a new approach to tracheal intubation.

Ameloblastoma is a benign, locally aggressive tumor originating from the odontogenic epithelium. It manifests as a slow growing swelling, causing expansion of the jaw bones. Radiologically, it presents as a unilocular or multilocular radiolucency exhibiting a characteristic soap bubble or honeycomb appearance. Ameloblastoma exhibits several histologic patterns of which basal cell variant is a rare entity. The present case report is that of a maxillary ameloblastoma exhibiting a basaloid differentiation that may put one in the mind of a basaloid squamous cell carcinoma or a basal cell carcinoma. Confirmation of such rare variants should be done not only based on histopathology but with the help of supplemental immunohistochemical analysis. The present case report helps in exposing a rare variant of ameloblastoma and emphasizes the role of advanced diagnostic aids such as immunohistochemistry in establishing the diagnosis.

<p class="abstract">A 9-year old child presented with tubercular retropharyngeal abscess leading to stridor. Tubercular retropharyngeal abscess is an extremely rare condition in children. Early management reduces the risk of lethal complications. Due to the absence of classical signs, the diagnosis may be delayed. Therefore, adequate radiological investigations and microbiological studies of aspirate must be done to rule out tubercular aetiology. Conservative medical management should be given in uncomplicated cases. Surgical drainage must be done in cases resistant to medical therapy or presenting with complications.</p>

No abstract