SomyaRanjan Pani’s scientific contributions

Background The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a highly contagious acute respiratory disease caused by a novel virus called severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). COVID-19 infection presents with respiratory illness and even respiratory failure and death. Olfactory dysfunction is an important clinical manifestation that has an impact on quality of life. Objective This study is designed to analyze the role of the topical nasal corticosteroid in post-COVID olfactory dysfunction. Materials and Methods This is a prospective and descriptive study on 72 COVID-19 patients who were administered topical intranasal corticosteroids and olfactory training. All of them were diagnosed with COVID-19 infection by reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction of the nasopharyngeal swab. The detailed clinical examination and treatment with intranasal corticosteroid and its outcome were analyzed. Results In this study, 46 (63.88%) patients were male and 26 (36.11%) were female with a male-to-female ratio of 1.76:1. The age ranges from 18 to 58 years. There were 30 (41.66%) patients in the age range of 18–30 years and 42 (58.33%) patients in the age range of 31–58 years. Out of 72 patients, 11 (15.27%) patients recovered after 2 weeks, 34 (47.22%) patients recovered after 3 weeks, and 20 (27.77%) recovered after 4 weeks. Three patients lost to follow-up during the treatment period. Conclusion COVID-19 infection is spreading quickly all the continents of the world. Olfactory dysfunction is an important symptom of the COVID-19 infection. Intranasal mometasone spray and olfactory training are useful treatment options for post-COVID olfactory dysfunction.

Background: Nasal obstruction is a common symptom among children with numerous causes. Congenital or acquired nasal septal deviation may cause nasal obstruction in children. Deviated nasal septum (DNS) may also result in sinusitis, headache, epistaxis and hyposmia which increase the morbidity of the child and hamper the quality of life. Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate the clinical details of the DNS among children at a tertiary care teaching hospital. Methods: This is a retrospective study conducted at a tertiary care teaching hospital between November 2016 and December 2021. History of nasal obstruction, mouth breathing, nasal bleeding and sinusitis among children with DNS was noted. Physical examination such as anterior rhinoscopy, fiberoptic endoscopic examinations of both nostrils and imaging such as computed tomography scan were done in all participating children with DNS. Results: Out of 652 children who attended the outpatient department of otorhinolaryngology, 128 (19.63%) were diagnosed with DNS. Out of 128 children with DNS, 72 (56.25%) were male and 56 (43.75%) were female with a male-to-female ratio of 1.28: 1. Out of 128 children, 54 (42.18%) children showed C-shaped DNS, 27 (21.09%) showed anterior dislocation, 21 (16.40%) showed S-shaped DNS, 15 (11.78%) showed spur and 11 (8.59%) showed nasal septal thickening. Conclusions: DNS and its impact on nasal breathing impairment in children are often underestimated by clinicians. Clinicians often have little knowledge on the impact of DNS and its clinical manifestations in children and its appropriate management. Early intervention for DNS in children is helpful to prevent morbid symptoms and their complications.

Introduction Stapedius muscle is the smallest bone in the human body and it has an important role for preventing loud noise exposing to the inner ear. This stapedius muscle has also a very significant role during stapes surgery for otosclerosis. Materials and Methods We studied the microscopic anatomy of the 36-stapedius muscle at our temporal bone dissection laboratory during the period of March 2019 to April 2021. All the 36 fresh temporal bones were dissected with the help of the microdrill, burr, and Zeiss microscope. Details of the stapedius muscle anatomy such as origin, extension, and attachment were studied. Results The length of the stapedius muscle was ranging from 8 to 11 mm. The tendon of the stapedius muscle was ranging from 1.5 to 2.5 mm. The classical shape of the stapedius muscle was sickle shape. The bulky bell of the stapedius muscle was from 1.5 to 3.5 mm. Discussion and Conclusion Clear anatomical knowledge of the stapedius muscle is needed for the postgraduates and during learning period of the otologist. If anatomical knowledge is not clear, it may lead to confusion between the stapedius muscle and facial nerve. Awareness regarding microscopic anatomic is required for avoiding the confusion between the facial nerve and stapedius muscle or during the facial nerve grafting.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection is highly contagious and the increasing number of patients with variety of symptoms. Olfactory loss is currently a well-recognized symptom of COVID-19 infection. Many patients with COVID-19 infections recover with their normal sense of smell after few weeks, however certain portion of them develop long-standing olfactory dysfunction. Objective: The objective is to study the role of oral corticosteroids and olfactory training (OT) as a treatment for olfactory dysfunction in COVID-19 patient. Materials and Methods: This is a prospective and descriptive study on 78 COVID-19 patients who administered oral corticosteroids and OT. All of them were diagnosed with COVID-19 infection by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction of nasopharyngeal swab. The detail clinical examination and treatment with intranasal corticosteroid and its outcome were analyzed. Results: In this study, 46 (58.97%) patients were male and 32 (41.02%) were female with male to female ratio of 1.43:1. The age ranges of 18–62 years. There were 36 (46.15%) patients in the age range of 18–30 years, 42 (53.84%) patients in the age range of 31–62 years. Out of 78 patients, 11 (14.10%) patients were recovered after 2 weeks, 34 (43.58%) patients recovered after 3 weeks, and 24 (30.76%) recovered after 4 weeks. Three patients lost follow-up during the treatment period. Conclusion: Combination of short course of oral corticosteroids and OT is a beneficial and safe treatment option for COVID-19 patients with olfactory dysfunction. However, there is a crucial demand for further studies to corroborate this outcome.