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Treatment can include amoxicillin-clavulanic acid, intravenous fluid administration and paracetamol oral for pain relief. Other treatment varies based on the condition and extent of uropathy.
Lip pits may be surgically removed either for aesthetic reasons or discomfort due to inflammation caused by bacterial infections or chronic saliva excretion, though spontaneous shrinkage of the lip pits has occurred in some rare cases. Chronic inflammation has also been reported to cause squamous-cell carcinoma. It is essential to completely remove the entire lip pit canal, as mucoid cysts can develop if mucous glands are not removed. A possible side effect of removing the lip pits is a loose lip muscle. Other conditions associated with VWS, including CL, CP, congenital heart defects, etc. are surgically corrected or otherwise treated as they would be if they were non-syndromic.
Because newborns can breathe only through their nose, the main goal of postnatal treatment is to establish a proper airway. Primary surgical treatment of FND can already be performed at the age of 6 months, but most surgeons wait for the children to reach the age of 6 to 8 years. This decision is made because then the neurocranium and orbits have developed to 90% of their eventual form. Furthermore, the dental placement in the jaw has been finalized around this age.
Many of the congenital malformations found with Malpuech syndrome can be corrected surgically. These include cleft lip and palate, omphalocele, urogenital and craniofacial abnormalities, skeletal deformities such as a caudal appendage or scoliosis, and hernias of the umbillicus. The primary area of concern for these procedures applied to a neonate with congenital disorders including Malpuech syndrome regards the logistics of anesthesia. Methods like tracheal intubation for management of the airway during general anesthesia can be hampered by the even smaller, or maldeveloped mouth of the infant. For regional anesthesia, methods like spinal blocking are more difficult where scoliosis is present. In a 2010 report by Kiernan et al., a four-year-old girl with Malpuech syndrome was being prepared for an unrelated tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. While undergoing intubation, insertion of a laryngoscope, needed to identify the airway for the placement of the endotracheal tube, was made troublesome by the presence of micrognathia attributed to the syndrome. After replacement with a laryngoscope of adjusted size, intubation proceeded normally. Successful general anesthesia followed.
A rare follow-up of a male with Malpuech syndrome was presented by Priolo et al. (2007). Born at term from an uneventful pregnancy and delivery, the infant underwent a surgical repair of a cleft lip and palate. No problems were reported with the procedure. A heart abnormality, atrial septal defect, was also apparent but required no intervention. At age three years, mental retardation, hyperactivity and obsessive compulsive disorder were diagnosed; hearing impairment was diagnosed at age six, managed with the use of hearing aids. Over the course of the decade that followed, a number of psychiatric evaluations were performed. At age 14, he exhibited a fear of physical contact; at age 15, he experienced a severe psychotic episode, characterized by agitation and a loss of sociosexual inhibition. This array of symptoms were treated pharmocologically (with prescription medications). He maintained a low level of mental deficiency by age 17, with moments of compulsive echolalia.
At the beginning of the surgery a tourniquet will be applied to the limb. A tourniquet compresses and control the arterial and venous circulation for about 2 hours. The constriction band must be dissected very carefully to avoid damaging the underlying neurovasculature. When the constriction band is excised, there will be a direct closure. This allows the fatty tissue to naturally reposition itself under the skin.
“With complete circumferential constriction bands, it is recommended that a two-stage correction approach be used. At the first operation, one-half of the circumference is excised and the other one-half can be excised after three to six months. This will avoid any problems to the distal circulation in the limb, which may already be compromised. Lymphedema, when present, will significantly improve within a few weeks of the first surgery.”
For the direct closure of the defect after dissecting a constriction band there are two different techniques:
1. Triangular flaps; For this technique the circumference between the two borders must be measured. Depending on the difference the number of triangular flaps can be decided. With a triangular flap you can create more skin.
2. Z/W-plasty; “Z-plasty is a plastic surgery technique that is used to improve the functional and cosmetic appearance of scars. It can elongate a contracted scar or rotate the scar tension line. The middle line of the Z-shaped incision (the central element) is made along the line of greatest tension or contraction, and triangular flaps are raised on opposite sides of the two ends and then transposed.”
In rare cases, if diagnosed in utero, fetal surgery may be considered to save a limb that is in danger of amputation or other deformity. This operation has been successfully performed on fetuses as young as 22 weeks. The Melbourne's Monash Medical Centre in Australia, as well as multiple facilities in the United States of America, have performed successful amniotic band release surgery.
Surgical correction is recommended when a constriction ring results in a limb contour deformity, with or without lymphedema.
Structural nasal deformities are corrected during or shortly after the facial bipartition surgery. In this procedure, bone grafts are used to reconstruct the nasal bridge. However, a second procedure is often needed after the development of the nose has been finalized (at the age of 14 years or even later).
Secondary rhinoplasty is based mainly on a nasal augmentation, since it has been proven better to add tissue to the nose than to remove tissue. This is caused by the minimal capacity of contraction of the nasal skin after surgery.
In rhinoplasty, the use of autografts (tissue from the same person as the surgery is performed on) is preferred. However, this is often made impossible by the relative damage done by previous surgery. In those cases, bone tissue from the skull or the ribs is used. However, this may give rise to serious complications such as fractures, resorption of the bone, or a flattened nasofacial angle.
To prevent these complications, an implant made out of alloplastic material could be considered. Implants take less surgery time, are limitlessly available and may have more favorable characteristics than autografts. However, possible risks are rejection, infection, migration of the implant, or unpredictable changes in the physical appearance in the long term.
At the age of skeletal maturity, orthognathic surgery may be needed because of the often hypoplastic maxilla. Skeletal maturity is usually reached around the age of 13 to 16. Orthognathic surgery engages in diagnosing and treating disorders of the face and teeth- and jaw position.
There are several options for treatment of mouth anomalies like Tessier cleft number 2-3-7 . These clefts are also seen in various syndromes like Treacher Collins syndrome and hemifacial microsomia, which makes the treatment much more complicated. In this case, treatment of mouth anomalies is a part of the treatment of the syndrome.
While there is no cure for JBS, treatment and management of specific symptoms and features of the disorder are applied and can often be successful. Variability in the severity of JBS on a case-by-case basis determines the requirements and effectiveness of any treatment selected.
Pancreatic insufficiency and malabsorption can be managed with pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy, such as pancrelipase supplementation and other related methods.
Craniofacial and skeletal deformities may require surgical correction, using techniques including bone grafts and osteotomy procedures. Sensorineural hearing loss can be managed with the use of hearing aids and educational services designated for the hearing impaired.
Special education, specialized counseling methods and occupational therapy designed for those with mental retardation have proven to be effective, for both the patient and their families. This, too, is carefully considered for JBS patients.
Cleft lip and palate is very treatable; however, the kind of treatment depends on the type and severity of the cleft.
Most children with a form of clefting are monitored by a "cleft palate team" or "craniofacial team" through young adulthood. Care can be lifelong. Treatment procedures can vary between craniofacial teams. For example, some teams wait on jaw correction until the child is aged 10 to 12 (argument: growth is less influential as deciduous teeth are replaced by permanent teeth, thus saving the child from repeated corrective surgeries), while other teams correct the jaw earlier (argument: less speech therapy is needed than at a later age when speech therapy becomes harder). Within teams, treatment can differ between individual cases depending on the type and severity of the cleft.
A craniofacial team is routinely used to treat this condition. The majority of hospitals still use craniofacial teams; yet others are making a shift towards dedicated cleft lip and palate programs. While craniofacial teams are widely knowledgeable about all aspects of craniofacial conditions, dedicated cleft lip and palate teams are able to dedicate many of their efforts to being on the cutting edge of new advances in cleft lip and palate care.
Many of the top pediatric hospitals are developing their own CLP clinics in order to provide patients with comprehensive multi-disciplinary care from birth through adolescence. Allowing an entire team to care for a child throughout their cleft lip and palate treatment (which is ongoing) allows for the best outcomes in every aspect of a child's care. While the individual approach can yield significant results, current trends indicate that team based care leads to better outcomes for CLP patients. .
High quality evidence is lacking for cranial remolding orthosis (baby helmet) for the positional condition and use for this purpose is controversial. If conservative treatment is unsuccessful helmets may help to correct abnormal head shapes. These helmets are used to treat deformational plagiocephaly, brachycephaly, scaphocephaly and other head shape deformities in infants 3–18 months of age by gently allowing the head shape to grow back into a normal shape. This type of treatment has been used for severe deformations.
The condition may improve to some extent as the baby grows, but in some cases, treatment can improve the shape of a baby’s head.
Practical surgical procedures used for treating synkinesis are neurolysis and selective myectomy. Neurolysis has been shown to be effective in relieving synkinesis but only temporarily and unfortunately symptoms return much worse than originally. Selective myectomy, in which a synkinetic muscle is selectively resected, is a much more effective technique that can provide permanent relief and results in a low recurrence rate; unfortunately, it also has many post-operative complications that can accompany including edema, hematoma, and ecchymosis. Therefore, surgical procedures are very minimally used by doctors and are used only as last-resort options for patients who do not respond well to non-invasive treatments.
There is no single strategy for treatment of facial clefts, because of the large amount of variation in these clefts. Which kind of surgery is used depends on the type of clefting and which structures are involved. There is much discussion about the timing of reconstruction of bone and soft tissue. The problem with early reconstruction is the recurrence of the deformity due to the intrinsic restricted growth. This requires additional operations at a later age to make sure all parts of the face are in proportion. A disadvantage of early bone reconstruction is the chance to damage the tooth germs, which are located in the maxilla, just under the orbit. The soft tissue reconstruction can be done at an early age, but only if the used skin flap can be used again during a second operation. The timing of the operation depends on the urgency of the underlying condition. If the operation is necessary to function properly, it should be done at early age. The best aesthetic result is achieved when the incisions are positioned in areas which attract the least attention (they cover up the scars). If, however, the function of a part of the face isn’t damaged, the operation depends on psychological factors and the facial area of reconstruction.
The treatment plan of a facial cleft is planned right after diagnosis. This plan includes every operation needed in the first 18 years of the patients life to reconstruct the face fully.
In this plan, a difference is made between problems that need to be solved to improve the health of the patient (coloboma) and problems that need to be solved for a better cosmetic result (hypertelorism).
The treatment of the facial clefts can be divided in different areas of the face: the cranial anomalies, the orbital and eye anomalies, the nose anomalies, the midface anomalies and the mouth anomalies.
If binocular vision is present and head position is correct, treatment is not obligatory.
Treatment is required for: visual symptoms, strabismus, or incorrect head position.
Acquired cases that have active inflammation of the superior oblique tendon may benefit from local corticosteroid injections in the region of the trochlea.
The goal of surgery is to restore free ocular rotations. Various surgical techniques have been used:
- Harold Brown advocated that the superior oblique tendon be stripped. A procedure named sheathotomy. The results of such a procedure are frequently unsatisfactory because of reformation of scar tissue.
- Tenotomy of the superior oblique tendon (with or with out a tendon spacer) has also been advocated. This has the disadvantage that it frequently produces a superior oblique paresis.
- Weakening of the inferior oblique muscle of the affected eye may be needed to compensate for iatrogenic fourth nerve palsy.
During surgery, a traction test is repeated until the eye rotations are free and the eye is anchored in an elevated adducted position for about two weeks after the surgery. This maneuver is intended to prevent the reformation of scar tissue in the same places. Normalization of head position may occur but restoration of full motility is seldom achieved. A second procedure may be required.
Treatment can include pharmaceutical or surgical means. The drug carbamazepine (Tegretol) has been used successfully. Other drugs used with variable success include gabapentin and, recently, memantine. Successful surgery options include superior oblique tenectomy accompanied by inferior oblique myectomy. However, "Overall, the bulk of the ophthalmic literature would agree with the viewpoint that invasive craniotomy surgical procedures should be justified only by the presence of intractable and absolutely unbearable symptoms."
Samii et al. and Scharwey and Samii described a patient who had superior oblique myokymia for 17 years. The interposition of a Teflon pad between the trochlear nerve and a compressing artery and vein at the nerve's exit from the midbrain led to a remission lasting for a follow-up of 22 months.
Botox (botulinum toxin) is a new and versatile tool for the treatment of synkinesis. Initially used for reducing hyperkinesis after facial palsy, Botox was later attempted on patients with post-facial palsy synkinesis to reduce unwanted movements. The effects of Botox have shown to be remarkable, with synkinetic symptoms disappearing within 2 or 3 days. The most common treatment targets are the orbicularis oculi, depressor anguli oris (DAO), mentalis, platysma and the contralateral depressor labii inferioris muscles. Due to the short span of Botox effects though, patients must come back to the doctor for re-injection approximately every 3 months. More notable is that in a majority of patients, various synkinetic movements completely disappeared after 2-3 sessions of trimonthly Botox injections.
A more specific synkinesis, crocodile tears syndrome (hyperlacrimation upon eating), has been shown to respond exceedingly well to Botox injection. Botox is injected directly into the lacrimal gland and has shown to reduce hyperlacrimation within 24–48 hours. The procedure was shown to be simple and safe with very little chance of side-effects (although on rare occasions ptosis can occur due to botulinum toxin diffusion). Furthermore, reduction in hyper-lacrimation was shown to last longer than the expected 3 months (about 12 months).
Since Botox can mimic facial paralysis, an optimized dose has been determined that reduces involuntary synkinesis of the muscle while not affecting muscle tone.
Initially, the condition is treated with physical therapies, such as stretching to release tightness, strengthening exercises to improve muscular balance, and handling to stimulate symmetry. A TOT collar is sometimes applied. Early initiation of treatment is very important for full recovery and to decrease chance of relapse.
Surgical release involves the two heads of the sternocleidomastoid muscle being dissected free. This surgery can be minimally invasive and done laparoscopically. Usually surgery is performed on those who are over 12 months old. The surgery is for those who do not respond to physical therapy or botulinum toxin injection or have a very fibrotic sternocleidomastoid muscle. After surgery the child will be required to wear a soft neck collar (also called as Callot's cast). There will be an intense physiotherapy program for 3–4 months as well as strengthening exercises for the neck muscles.
Other treatments include:
- Rest and analgesics for acute cases
- Diazepam or other muscle relaxants
- Botulinum toxin
- Encouraging active movements for children 6–8 months of age
- Ultrasound diathermy
Urofacial (Ochoa) syndrome received the Ochoa name because of the first person to describe it back in 1987, Bernardo Ochoa.
There is currently no defined treatment to ameliorate the muscle weakness of CPEO. Treatments used to treat other pathologies causing ophthalmoplegia has not been shown to be effective.
Experimental treatment with tetracycline has been used to improve ocular motility in one patient. Coenzyme Q has also been used to treat this condition. However, most neuro-ophthalmologists do not ascribe to any treatment.
Ptosis associated with CPEO may be corrected with surgery to raise the lids, however due to weakness of the orbicularis oculi muscles, care must be taken not to raise the lids in excess causing an inability to close the lids. This results in an exposure keratopathy. Therefore, rarely should lid surgery be performed and only by a neuro-ophthalmologist familiar with the disease.
The most common strabismus finding is large angle exotropia which can be treated by maximal bilateral eye surgery, but due to the progressive nature of the disease, strabismus may recur. Those that have diplopia as a result of asymmetric ophthalmoplegia may be corrected with prisms or with surgery to create a better alignment of the eyes.
Congenital fourth cranial nerve palsy can be treated with strabismus surgery, where muscle attachment sites on the globe are modified to realign the eyes. Some eye doctors prefer conservative or no management of congenital fourth nerve palsy.
Other eye doctors recommend surgery early in a patient's life to prevent the compensatory torticollis and facial asymmetry that develop with age.
Prism lenses set to make minor optical changes in the vertical alignment may be prescribed instead of or after surgery to fine-tune the correction. Prism lenses do not address torsional misalignment and this may limit their use in certain cases. An additional consideration of prism lenses is that they must be worn at all times. Prism lenses reduce vertical fusional demands by allowing the eyes to rest in their vertically misaligned state. When they are removed the patient may experience vertical diplopia they find hard to resolve due to the rested state of their eyes.
Cases of congenital fourth nerve palsy vary in magnitude and way they affect the motion of the superior oblique muscle. Therefore different surgeries are available dependent upon the type of misalignment. Sometimes surgery on more than one eye muscle is required. In some simpler, unilateral cases a single surgery may suffice. In these cases the main problem is that the inferior oblique muscle of the same eye acts unopposed by the weakened superior oblique muscle, pulling the eye up. An example of a safe and effective procedure is a disinsertion of the inferior oblique muscle to allow it to reattach itself further down the globe of the eye. This acts to 'weaken' its action and allow the eye to move back into a more neutral alignment.
In all cases of congenital fourth nerve palsy, it is important to see an experienced strabismologist about management/treatment options. A strabismologist is an ophthalmologist (eye doctor) specialising in eye movement disorders.
Genetic counseling for VWS involves discussion of disease transmission in the autosomal dominant manner and possibilities for penetrance and expression in offspring. Autosomal dominance means affected parents have a 50% chance of passing on their mutated "IRF6" allele to a their child. Furthermore, if a cleft patient has lip pits, he or she has a ten times greater risk of having a child with cleft lip with or without cleft palate than a cleft patient who does not have lip pits. Types of clefting between parents and affected children are significantly associated; however, different types of clefts may occur horizontally and vertically within the same pedigree. In cases where clefting is the only symptom, a complete family history must be taken to ensure the patient does not have non-syndromic clefting.
From the knowledge of the sensimotor development a number of other automatic reactions were distinguished, such as balance, support and automatic adaptations of muscle power changes to postures. Patients with hemiplegia have movements that are lower level and less motor coordination, and often must relearn these movements to continue or gain normal automatic transitions in the body. Neuro developmental treatment (NDT) often improves daily functioning and self-help. This treatment centers on reversing disabilities, specifically for patients who are hemiplegic with impaired sensimotor and neuropsychological functions. Muscle regulation that is disturbed, often called hypo or hypertonic, causes abnormal movement patterns. These automatic reactions are impaired, and patients must learn these movements and remember mentally and physically the positions.
NDT uses muscle power techniques through inhibiting and stimulating certain muscle groups, which aims to lower or increase muscle tone. For facial expression, therapists often help the patient make facial expressions by manipulating specific muscles with their fingers. The patient then tries to imitate the facial expressions. Speech therapy helps correct word pronunciation. NDT is directed at the functioning of the whole body, and not just the face. Understanding the direct mechanisms of the face is required to determine the dysfunction of specific muscles. NDT seems to be effective, but spontaneous motor movement that is controlled was not examined.