Unilateral recurrent laryngeal nerve paralysis:The importance of “preoperative” voice therapy

This preliminary retrospective study of 19 female patients and 22male patients with unilateral recurrent nerve lesions demonstrated the promise of objective measurements in predicting the need for surgery, the efficacy of voice therapy in ameliorating vocal symptoms, and the effects of therapy in conjunction with surgery. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of the female patients and 64% of the male patients did not elect to have surgery. Outcome satisfaction of nonsurgical and surgical patients appeared to be similar. The data from this study support the importance of preoperative therapy for patients with unilateral vocal fold paralysis.     

pH-dependent spectral properties of para-aminobenzoic acid and its derivatives

The local environment dictates the structural and functional properties of many important chemical and biological systems. The impact of pH on the photophysical properties of a series of para-aminobenzoic acids is examined using a combination of experimental spectroscopy and quantum chemical calculations. Following photoexcitation, PABA derivatives may undergo an intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) resulting in the formation of a zwitterionic species. The thermodynamics of the excited state reaction and temperature-dependence of the radiative emission processes are evaluated through variable temperature fluorescence spectroscopy carried out in a range of aqueous buffers. Quantum chemical calculations are used to analyze structural changes with modifications at the amine position and different protonation states. The ICT is only observed in the tertiary amine, which calculations show has more sp(2) character than the primary or secondary amines. Thermodynamic analysis indicates the ICT reaction is driven by entropy.     

An abstract version of the Morse index theorem and its application to hypersurfaces of constant mean curvature

In [5] Smale generalized the Morse index theorem (originally proved by Morse in [3]) to elliptic partial differential systems in several independent variables. Smale's result was used by Simons in [4] to obtain the index theorem for minimal submanifolds. The purpose of this paper is to give an abstract version of the Morse index theorem and use it to prove an index theorem for hypersurfaces of constant mean curvature. This was sugested by Barbosa and do Carmo in [1].     

Gastroesophageal reflux laryngitis resistant to omeprazole therapy

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is known to cause a variety of symptoms that lead a patient to seek otolaryngologic care. New advances in the treatment of GERD have enabled otolaryngologists to eliminate most of the signs and symptoms caused by acid reflux. Omeprazole, the most recent pharmacologic advancement, has been reported to be universally successful in controlling acid release from the stomach of patients with GERD. This report describes a series of patients with GERD for whom high-dose omeprazole therapy was not successful in completely reducing gastric acid levels of GERD symptomatology.     

Arytenoid dislocation

Arytenoid dislocation is a common yet infrequently diagnosed complication of laryngeal trauma. It may result in various symptoms, including permanent dysphonia, although immediate voice change is not always present. Early reduction is the treatment of choice; however, late reduction is often successful in restoring voice. A high index of suspicion based on the history of the patient is necessary to recognize arytenoid dislocation. Thorough physical examination and objective tests are helpful in confirming this diagnosis.     

Synthesis, structure, redox properties and azide binding for a series of biphenyl-based Cu(II) complexes

A series of biphenyl-based N(3)O ligands, 2, 4, 6, and 8 were synthesized and their Cu(II) complexes prepared. These complexes were characterized by a combination of elemental analysis, FAB-MS, UV-vis spectroscopy and electrochemistry. The structure of [Cu(N(3)O-mpy-NO2)Cl2], 12 [N(3)O-mpy = 2-(3-pyridylmethylimino)-2'-(2-methylaminophenol)biphenyl], was solved and showed that the ligand coordinates through the three nitrogens with the phenol oxygen uncoordinated. Titration of azide anion into solutions of the complexes in methanol resulted in the appearance of a new band between 485-495 nm at the expense of the starting peak at 380 nm. Cyclic voltammetry studies indicated that the complexes undergo quasi-reversible one-electron reductions in acetonitrile at potentials between 0.13-0.58 V vs. Ag/AgCl. The complexes were found to be weakly active for the oxidation of di-tert-butyl catechol (DTBC).     

Conservative methods for the Toda lattice equations

We are concerned with the numerical integration of the Todalattice equations by using different conservative methods. Numericalexperiments suggest that the global error for isospectral schemesdecreases exponentially with time but it is almost constantfor either symplectic or more general integrators. We providea theoretical explanation for these experimental findings.