BACKGROUND: The vocal cord tissue consists of three anatomical layers from the surface to deep inside: the epithelium that contains almost no collagen, the lamina propria that is composed of abundant collagen, and the vocalis muscle layer. It is clinically important to visualize the tissue microstructure using a non-invasive method, especially in the case of vocal cord nodules or cancer, since histological changes in each layer of the vocal cord cause changes in the voice. Polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography (PS-OCT) enables phase retardation measurement to evaluate birefringence of tissue with varied organization of collagen fibers in different tissue layers. Therefore, PS-OCT can visualize structural changes between normal and abnormal vocal cord tissue. METHOD: A rabbit laryngeal tumor model with different stages of tumor progression was investigated ex-vivo by PS-OCT. A phase retardation slope-based analysis, which quantifies the birefringence in different layers, was conducted to distinguish the epithelium, lamina propria, and muscle layers. RESULTS: The PS-OCT images showed a gradual decrease in birefringence from normal tissue to advanced tumor tissue. The quantitative analysis provided a more detailed comparison among different stages of the rabbit laryngeal tumor model, which was validated by the corresponding histological findings. CONCLUSION: Differences in tissue birefringence was evaluated by PS-OCT phase retardation measurement. It is also possible to indirectly infer the dysplastic changes based on the mucosal and submucosal alterations.

Taek Yong Ko, M.D., Jong In Kim, M.D., Sang Ho Lee, M.D.. Korean J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2020;53:22-7. https://doi.org/10.5090/kjtcs.2020.53.1.22

Traditional hyperthermia involves increasing the temperature at the tumor site to above 39 ℃, inducing death in cancer cells. Although hyperthermia is an effective cancer treatment, its clinical application has decreased due to potential complications, including damage to surrounding normal tissue. In recent years, modulated electro-hyperthermia (mEHT) has emerged as an effective and safe treatment modality. mEHT selectively heats tumor cells to 42–43 °C, while reducing the average temperature in the treatment area, including the surrounding normal tissue, compared to conventional methods. Additionally, mEHT may be used in combination with systemic chemotherapy and radiation therapy in tumor treatment, providing a synergistic effect to increase efficacy. As chemotherapy and radiation therapy technologies advance, the application of combined mEHT may improve clinical outcomes. In this study, we review and discuss reports on the clinical outcomes of mEHT combined with chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy, which are established anticancer treatments.

Noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT) is widely performed and enables the detection of fetal chromosomal abnormalities through the analysis of cell-free fetal DNA in maternal blood. Since its introduction in 2011, NIPT has demonstrated high sensitivity and specificity for common trisomies (trisomy 21, trisomy 18, trisomy 13), and its scope has rapidly expanded to include sex chromosome aneuploidies, microdeletion syndromes, and single-gene disorders. However, the widespread adoption of NIPT has brought new challenges, including technical limitations (e.g., low fetal fraction, placental mosaicism), interpretation of variants of uncertain significance, and ethical concerns related to over-screening and patient anxiety. This review summarizes the historical evolution, technical advances, clinical applications, limitations, and future perspectives of NIPT, emphasizing the need for balanced clinical implementation and ongoing innovation.

Background: Wrong-route administration of intravenous (IV) medications into the epidural space is a rare but potentially harmful event in anesthetic practice. Although various agents have been inadvertently injected via the epidural route, there have been no previous reports involving sugammadex or ramosetron.Case: We report the accidental epidural injection of sugammadex (200 mg) and ramosetron (0.3 mg) in a 69-year-old female under general anesthesia with thoracic epidural analgesia. Errors were recognized within 5 min. As the patient exhibited no immediate adverse effects, emergence from anesthesia proceeded with IV sugammadex administration. Six hours later, the patient developed mild right triceps weakness and bilateral C8 dermatomal tingling, which improved on postoperative day two. The patient was discharged without any neurological sequelae.Conclusions: Although the outcome was benign, this incident underscores the potential risks of wrong-route drug delivery and highlights the need for vigilance and preventive strategies in perioperative medication management.