Minimal criteria Flashcards
Management of epistaxis/nosebleeding (anterior, posterior) by ENT professionals
- Blood pressure-measurement, antihypertensive treatment - if needed
- Visible bleeding source: chemical cauterization (trichloroacetate, silver nitrate) or coagulation (bipolar electrocoagulation)
- Anterior nasal bleeding: anterior nasal packing
- Posterior nose bleeding: posterior nasal packing (Bellocq tamponade), balloon catheter.
Indications of tonsillectomy (absolute and relative)
Absolute indications:
- Rheumatic fever
- Peritonsillar abscess
- Tonsillogenic sepsis.
Relative indications:
- Chronic tonsillitis
- Recurrent tonsillitis
- Tonsillogenic or posttonsillitis focal symptoms
- Marked hypertrophy of the tonsils causing mechanical obstruction
- If a tonsillar tumor is suspected
- Obstructive sleep-apnea syndrome or other obstructive sleep-related breathing disorders
- Severe orofacial/dental disorders causing narrow upper airways.
Swollen neck lymph nodes – causes:
- Non-specific inflammations (e.g. upper respiratory tract infections);
-
Specific inflammations:
- Bacterial: TB, syphilis, cat scratch disease, tularemia.
- Protozoal: toxoplasmosis.
- Viral: HIV-infection.
- Non-infectious: sarcoidosis
- Lymphomas
- Metastases of head and neck cancers.
Peritonsillar abscess – treatment
- Drainage of the abscess - puncture, incision, daily opening of the abscess cavity
-
Tonsillectomy:
- Abscess-tonsillectomy
- tonsillectomy 6 weeks after recovery
- Antibiotics, decreasing edema, analgesics, administration of fluids.
Pathogens of tonsillitis and pharyngitis, indication of antibiotic treatment
Pathogens:
-
Viral (80-90%)
- Adenovirus, rhinovirus
- (EBV - infectious mononucleosis)
-
Bacterial:
- Streptococcus pyogenes - follicular tonsillitis
- Group C and G Streptococci
- Mycoplasma, Chlamydia, Neisseria subspecies;
- (Pneumococci)
- (Haemophilus influenzae)
- (Moraxella catarrhalis)
- (Staphylococcus subspecies);
Antibiotics:
Bacterial infection -
- Physical findings
- Laboratory findings (blood count, CRP, ESR, rapid bacteriological test)
- Acute or chronic infection
- Presence of immunosuppression.
Most frequent causes of dysphagia
- GERD
- Globus feeling, psyhogenic disorders
- Inflammation in the mesopharyngeal, hypopharyngeal and laryngeal region
- Tumors in the mesopharyngeal, hypopharyngeal and laryngeal region
- Neuralgia (n. IX, n. X)
- Sensorial and motor innervation disorders: sensorial disorders in supraglottical region
- Foreign bodies in the hypopharynx and oesophagus Esophageal motility disorders, achalasia
- Diverticulum (e.g. Zenker)
- Esophageal, hypopharyngeal stenoses
Causes of unilateral nasal obstruction and discharge in childhood and in adulthood
Childhood:
- Foreign body
- Sinusitis
- Nasopharyngeal angiofibroma
- Congenital malformation: choanal atresia, meningoencephalocele.
Adulthood:
- Nasopharyngeal tumors
- Deviation of the nasal septum
- Hypertrophy of turbinates
- Trauma and it’s late consequences
- Obstruction due to diseases (polyp, benign and malignant tumors)
- Rhinosinusitis.
Primary management of epistaxis/nosebleeding (at home/ambulance/by GP)
- The patient should lean forward with open mouth, firm digital pressure should be applied to both nasal alae for 10 minutes
- Ephedrine/nasal drop/vasocontrictor solution-imbibed cotton or spongostan should be applied in nasal cavity
- Cold compress should be applied to the nape of the neck and to the nasal dorsum
- Blood pressure-measurement, antihypertensive treatment if needed.
How to diagnose vertigo caused by vestibular disorders
Patient history:
- Type of vertigo (sensation of spinning or falling)
- Vegetative symptoms, nausea, vomiting.
Examination:
- Deviation, tilting
- Spontaneous nystagmus and nystagmus provoked by head movements.
Evaluation of neck lumps – diagnostic steps
- Correct, accurate registration of patient history: e.g. duration of symptoms, upper respiratory tract infections, dysphagia, hoarseness
- Careful ENT examination – special attention should be paid to the examination of the neck: localization, consistency, sensibility of the lump, its relation to the surrounding structures
- Blood tests: inflammation markers, serology
- Imaging modalities: ultrasound, CT/MRI
- US guided Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy
- For lymphadenomegaly, excision of the node is carried out only if the evaluation of the FNAB reveals lymphoma (or, if it is needed by the pathologist).
Causes of chronic hoarseness (Why is it necessary to visit an ENT specialist after 3 weeks of hoarseness?)
- Acute and chronic inflammations of the larynx
- Benign laryngeal lesions (cysts, granulation, Reinke edema, polyps, papillomatosis)
- Malignant laryngeal lesions
- Recurrent laryngeal nerve paresis (which can be caused by: hypopharyngeal, thyroid gland, esophageal, pulmonary, mediastinal cancer, intracranial diseases)
- GERD
It is exceptionally important to diagnose a malignant lesion as soon as we can.
Management and complications of nasal folliculitis and furuncles
- Circumscript folliculitis: local therapy with antibiotic and steroid containing creams, vapor coverage
- The patient should be told not to pick or squeeze the lesions
- For furunculosis and/or phlegmonous reaction, parenteral antibiotics should be administered, along with vapor coverage
- The infection is usually caused by Staphylococcus aureus
- Possible complications: Facial phlegmone, angular vein thrombophlebitis, cavernous sinus thrombosis.
ENT diseases causing headache
- Viral infection of the upper airways
- Inflammation of nasal sinuses: (acute and chronic)
- Benign and malignant tumors of nasal sinuses
- Cervical: cervical vertebra disorders, spondylosis, myalgia
- Complications of otitis and sinusitis: mastoiditis, meningitis, brain abscess, inflammation of the petrous pyramid
- Neuralgias
- Pain of temporomandibular joint.
Causes of peripherial facial palsy (list)
- Bell’s palsy
- Herpes zoster oticus
- Other viral or bacterial infections (HSV, EBV, Lyme)
- Acute and chronic middle ear diseases (acute and chronic middle ear infections, cholesteatoma, rarely tumors)
- Tumors of the pontocerebellar angle, vestibular schwannoma
- Cranial traumas (pyramid bone fractures), extratemporal traumas
- Malignant tumors of parotid gland.
Clinical features, symptoms and complications of para- and retropharyngeal abscesses
Symptoms:
- Throat and neck pain
- Foreign-body sensation
- Fever
- Difficulty in swallowing
- Swelling of the lateral or posterior pharyngeal wall
- Trismus
- Torticollis
- Thick speech
- Laryngeal/oropharyngeal edema
Complications:
- Oropharyngeal and laryngeal edema
- Septicemia
- Mediastinitis
- Choking