The rate of functional problems after transoral laser surgery did not greatly decrease compared with the rate after the conventional procedure. The mayor advantage of the transoral approach was the lower incidence of temporary tracheotomies.

To explore the value of E-cadherin and focal adhesion kinase (FAK) expression in the prediction of cervical lymph node metastases in squamous cell carcinoma of the supraglottic larynx. Design: Immunohistochemical analysis of retrospectively selected cases. Patients: The study population was composed of 95 previously untreated men with squamous cell carcinoma of the supraglottic larynx. Intervention: All the patients underwent surgical resection of the tumor and bilateral neck dissection. Main Outcome Measures: E-cadherin and FAK expression in relation to nodal metastases. Results: Decreased E-cadherin expression was correlated with the presence of nodal metastases (P=.006). The combination of E-cadherin and FAK expression resulted in a superior accuracy in assessing nodal metastasis (P=.001). Histological grade was also associated with nodal metastases (P=.005). Multivariate analysis confirmed that these parameters were independent predictors of nodal metastases. In addition, the cases with decreased E-cadherin and increased FAK expression presented a significantly reduced disease-specific survival (P=.005). Conclusion: The combination of the expression of Ecadherin and FAK could increase our ability to identify patients with clinically negative lymph nodes who are at considerable risk for occult metastases.

The fermentative ability of five autochthonous Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains (XG1, XG2, XG3, XG4 and XG5) and their influence on the chemical composition and sensory properties of Treixadura wines were evaluated. The inoculated strains have successfully led and completed the fermentations. Wines obtained from different yeasts showed significant differences in total and volatile acidity. Regarding volatile compounds, significant differences among wines were found for acetates, ethyl esters, acetoin, 1-hexanol, and fatty acids. Wines from spontaneous fermentation and those made with yeasts XG3 and XG4 were clearly separated through principal component analysis. Chemical composition influenced sensory properties of wines, especially at the olfactory level. Different connotations of fruity notes predominated depending on the strain. The wine from strain XG4 was the most appreciated by panelists. Our results confirmed that autochthonous S. cerevisiae strains are useful tools in winemaking because they allow obtaining singular wines from a given variety.

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Portal hypertensive biliopathy (PHB) is characterized by anatomical and functional abnormalities of the intrahepatic, extrahepatic and pancreatic ducts, in patients with portal hypertension associated to extrahepatic portal vein obstruction and less frequently to cirrhosis. These morphological changes, consisting in dilatation and stenosis of the biliary tree, are due to extensive venous collaterals occurring in an attempt to decompress the portal venous blockage. It is usually asymptomatic until it progresses to more advanced stages with cholestasis, jaundice, biliary sludge, gallstones, cholangitis and finally biliary cirrhosis. Imaging modalities of the biliary tree such as Doppler ultrasound, computed tomography, magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography are essential to establish the diagnosis and the need of therapeutical interventions. Once the diagnosis is established, treatment with ursodesoxycholic acid seems to be beneficial. Decompression of the biliary tree to dilate, remove stones or implant biliary prosthesis by endoscopic or surgical procedures (hepato-yeyunostomy) usually resolves the cholestatic picture and prevents septic complications. The ideal treatment is the decompression of the portal system, with transjugular intrahepatic porto-systemic shunt or a surgical porto-systemic shunt. Unfortunately, few patients will be candidates for these procedures due to the extension of the thrombotic process. The purpose of this paper is to report the first 3 cases of PHB seen in a Colombian center and to review the literature.

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