The Korean Society of Laryngology, Phoniatrics and Logopedics appointed a task force to establish clinical practice guidelines for the management of unilateral vocal fold paralysis (UVFP). These guidelines cover a comprehensive range of management-related factors, including the diagnosis and treatment of UVFP, and provide in-depth information based on current, up-to-date knowledge. Detailed evidence profiles are provided for each recommendation. The CORE databases, including OVID Medline, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and KoreaMed, were searched to identify all relevant papers, using a predefined search strategy. When insufficient evidence existed, expert opinions and Delphi questionnaires were used to fill the evidence gap. The committee developed 16 evidence-based recommendations in six categories: initial evaluation (R1–4), spontaneous recovery (R5), medical treatment (R6), surgical treatment (R7–14), voice therapy (R15), and aspiration prevention (R16). The goal of these guidelines is to assist general otolaryngologists and speech-language pathologists who are primarily responsible for treating patients with UVFP. These guidelines are also intended to facilitate understanding of the condition among other health-care providers, including primary care physicians, nurses, and policy-makers.

This study compared the risk of chronic periodontitis (CP) between chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and non-chronic rhinosinusitis (control) patients using a national cohort dataset from the Korean Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. CRS (n = 5951) and control participants (n = 23,804) were selected after 1:4 ratio matching for age, sex, income, region of residence, and preoperative CP visits. Postoperative CP visits were measured between 2002 and 2015. The margin of equivalence of the difference between the CRS and control groups was set between −0.5 and 0.5. Statistical significance was noted in the post-index date (ID) of the third, fourth, and fifth year periods. In subgroup analyses according to age and sex, statistical significance was observed in 40–59-year-old males in post-ID third, fourth, and fifth year periods, ≥60-year-old males in post-ID third and fourth year periods, and ≥60-year-old females in post-ID fifth year period (p < 0.05, each). In another subgroup analysis based on the number of pre-ID CP visits, statistical significance was observed for pre-ID CP (0 time) in the third, fourth, and fifth year periods (p < 0.05, each). This study revealed that CRS participants were likely to receive CP diagnosis and treatment.

The aim of this study was to develop evidence-based recommendations for determining the surgical extent in patients with locally invasive differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC). Locally invasive DTC with gross extrathyroidal extension invading surrounding anatomical structures may lead to several functional deficits and poor oncological outcomes. At present, the optimal extent of surgery in locally invasive DTC remains a matter of debate, and there are no adequate guidelines. On October 8, 2021, four experts searched the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases; the identified papers were reviewed by 39 experts in thyroid and head and neck surgery. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to assess the quality of evidence, and to develop and report recommendations. The strength of a recommendation reflects the confidence of a guideline panel that the desirable effects of an intervention outweigh any undesirable effects, across all patients for whom the recommendation is applicable. After completing the draft guidelines, Delphi questionnaires were completed by members of the Korean Society of Head and Neck Surgery. Twenty-seven evidence-based recommendations were made for several factors, including the preoperative workup; surgical extent of thyroidectomy; surgery for cancer invading the strap muscles, recurrent laryngeal nerve, laryngeal framework, trachea, or esophagus; and surgery for patients with central and lateral cervical lymph node involvement. Evidence-based guidelines were devised to help clinicians make safer and more efficient clinical decisions for the optimal surgical treatment of patients with locally invasive DTC.

A few prior researchers presumed the impacts of smoking and alcohol on the risk of Meniere’s disease (MD). This study investigated the relationship between smoking, alcohol consumption, and obesity with Meniere’s disease in an adult population. The ≥40-year-old population in the Korean National Health Insurance Service-Health Screening Cohort 2002–2019 was analyzed. A total of 15,208 patients with MD were matched with 499,658 comparison participants. The current smoking, alcohol consumption, and past medical histories were collected. Body mass index (BMI) was grouped into underweight, normal, overweight, obese I, and obese II. The odds of histories of smoking and alcohol consumption and the BMI group for MD were analyzed using conditional logistic regression analysis. These associations were further analyzed in subgroups of age, sex, smoking, alcohol consumption, and BMI. In the overall adult population, smoking and alcohol consumption did not show an association with MD. Being underweight was linked with lower odds for MD (adjusted OR [aOR] = 0.80, 95% CI = 0.68–0.93, p = 0.004). In the male group, smoking was positively associated with MD (aOR = 1.08, 95% CI = 1.00–1.17, p = 0.043), while alcohol consumption was negatively related to MD (aOR = 0.87, 95% CI = 0.81–0.94, p < 0.001). Being underweight was related to a lower risk of MD. In adult men, smoking was predicted to increase, while alcohol consumption was predicted to decrease the risk of MD.