The aims of this study were to evaluate the prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases in Korea. We obtained data from the 2008 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (KNHANES), which were cross-sectional surveys of the civilian, non-institutionalized population of South Korea (n=4,930). A field survey team that included an otolaryngologist, nurses, and interviewers moved with a mobile examination unit and performed otolaryngologic interviews and physical examinations. The prevalence of subjective hearing loss, tinnitus, preauricular fistua, tympanic membrane perforation, and cholesteatoma were 11.97%, 20.27%, 2.08%, 1.60%, and 1.18%, respectively. Dizziness and vestibular dysfunction were common among Korean adults, since 23.33% of the participants reported symptoms of dizziness or imbalance, and the prevalence of vestibular dysfunction was 3.86%. The prevalence of nasal diseases was relatively high, as the prevalence of allergic rhinitis, chronic rhinosinusitis, and a deviated nasal septum were 28.01%, 7.12%, and 42.94%, respectively. Subjective dysphonia was found in 6.60% of the participants, and the prevalence of subjective dysphonia increased with age. This is the first nation-wide epidemiologic study to assess the prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases by both the Korean Otolaryngologic Society and the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Considering the high prevalence of otolaryngologic diseases in Korea, the results call for additional studies to better prevent and manage otolaryngologic diseases.

To investigate the safety and efficacy of the no-tie (NT) technique using the harmonic scalpel (HS) in terms of the operating time and complications in total thyroidectomy with central neck dissection (CND). Recently, the HS has been used as an alternative to conventional hand-tied ligation for hemostasis in thyroid surgery, which is a time-consuming procedure. Limited data have been published on the evidence of its safety in total thyroidectomy accompanied by CND without supplementary hand-tied ligation. Sixty-five consecutive thyroidectomized patients were enrolled in this study. The final pathology in all the patients was thyroid papillary carcinoma. All patients underwent total thyroidectomy with CND. The NT technique using HS group consisted of 31 patients. The conventional hand-tied ligation technique group comprised 34 patients. The following variables were examined: operating time, intraoperative bleeding, incidence of perioperative complications (hemorrhage, hematoma, seroma, recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, hypoparathyroidism, and injury to the adjacent structures including the trachea and esophagus), the number of pathologically proven lymph nodes, total amount of drainage, duration of drain placement, and time of hospital discharge. The use of the HS reduced the operating time of total thyroidectomy with CND by an average of 43.12 minutes (P < 0.001). The number of pathologically proven lymph nodes was 7.32 +/- 1.66 in the NT group and 6.85 +/- 1.76 in the CT group (P = 0.274). No significant difference was observed in the overall perioperative complications, such as postoperative bleeding, temporary recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy, and temporary hypoparathyroidism, between the 2 groups. No permanent recurrent laryngeal nerve palsy and hypoparathyroidism occurred in either group. The NT technique with the HS is a relatively safe and effective method in total thyroidectomy combined with CND. Moreover, the HS significantly reduced the operating time.

Conclusion: Percutaneous steroid injection (PSI) may be a useful alternative modality for treatment of benign vocal fold lesions. Objectives: When patients refuse general anesthesia or voice therapy for benign vocal fold diseases (Reinke's edema, vocal polyp, nodule, and scarring), there are no other options available. We conducted an analysis of the effects of PSI as an alternative treatment for benign vocal fold diseases. Methods: From October 2008 to March 2010, 130 patients with benign vocal fold disease who refused general anesthesia or showed no response to voice therapy underwent PSI. From this group, the present study included 115 patients who completed the evaluation before PSI and at the first and third month after PSI and also an additional 25 patients who completed evaluation at the sixth month after PSI. Results: Among 115 patients in the study, 40 cases (34.8%) showed complete remission and 57 cases (49.6%) showed partial remission. As a result, overall improvement rates were 84.4%. Almost all objective and subjective parameters showed statistical improvement at the first and third month after PSI (p < 0.05). Jitter and all subjective parameters maintained statistical improvement until the sixth month. No severe complications, such as fold atrophy, were observed.