Restorative Surgery That Patients Can Smile About

Joshua D. Rosenberg, MD, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, is one of only a handful of U.S. surgeons who is using an innovative new procedure to restore the ability to smile in patients with facial paralysis.

The procedure, called cranial nerve V and VII transfer, helps to ameliorate the disfiguring effects of severe Bell’s palsy and, to a lesser extent, certain head and neck cancers. It calls for the surgeon to reroute the patient’s robust masseter nerve—which activates the chewing muscles—in order to power the paralyzed facial nerves and restore facial muscle function, specifically the muscles involved in smiling. (more…)

New Discoveries in Head and Neck Cancers

Shutting down inflammation within the body, and then harnessing the immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells, could provide the one-two punch needed to effectively treat head and neck cancers, according to researchers at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Research into the pivotal role played by the inflammatory molecule inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in promoting cancer growth and immune evasion is being led by Andrew G. Sikora, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor and Director of Head and Neck Translational Research in the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery.

(more…)

Pin It on Pinterest