No abstract available.
Diagnosis, Differential ; Headache/*etiology ; Human ; Mucocele/diagnosis ; Paranasal Sinus Diseases/complications/*diagnosis ; Paranasal Sinus Neoplasms/diagnosis ; Sinusitis/diagnosis ; Sphenoid Sinus/anatomy and histology/radiography ; Vision Disorders/etiology

INTRODUCTIONOssification of the cricoid ridge mimicking impacted upper aerodigestive tract fish bone has been described in several case reports. We performed this study to determine the prevalence of such ossification in an adult population from Singapore and to identify specific imaging features that may aid in differentiating patients with cricoid ridge ossification from those with an upper aerodigestive tract impacted fish bone.

METHODSWe retrospectively evaluated 442 lateral neck radiographs of patients aged 16 years and above that were taken at the adult emergency department at National University Hospital, Singapore, during the four-month period between 1 September 2014 and 31 December 2014.

RESULTSOssification of the cricoid ridge mimicking fish bone appeared in 3.2% of our adult patients and was more common among patients aged above 40 years (n = 11/227; 4.8%). The ossified cricoid ridge was usually located at the C6 level (n = 9) and had a mean length of 5.5 (range 2-9) mm.

CONCLUSIONOssified cricoid ridges may be misinterpreted on lateral neck radiography as ingested fish bones. While ossification of the cricoid ridge mimicking fish bones is rare, awareness of such ossification would reduce unnecessary further investigations of the upper aerodigestive tract in patients suspected of having an impacted foreign body.

Cost of Illness ; Financial Stress ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; Humans ; Perception ; Self Report

INTRODUCTION: Singapore instituted lockdown measures from 7 February 2020 to 1 June 2020 in response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. METHODS: A retrospective analysis of cases from the national trauma registry was carried out comparing the lockdown period (from 7 February 2020 to 1 June 2020) to the pre-lockdown period (from 7 February 2019 to 1 June 2019). Data extracted included the volume of Tier 1 (injury severity score [ISS] >15) and Tier 2 (ISS 9-15) cases and epidemiology. Subgroup analysis was performed for Tier 1 patient outcomes. RESULTS: Trauma volume decreased by 19.5%, with a 32% drop in Tier 1 cases. Road traffic and workplace accidents decreased by 50% (P < 0.01), while interpersonal violence showed an increase of 37.5% (P = 0.34). There was an 18.1% decrease in usage of trauma workflows (P = 0.01), with an increase in time to intervention for Tier 1 patients from 88 to 124 min (P = 0.22). Discharge to community facilities decreased from 31.4% to 17.1% (P < 0.05). There was no increase in inpatient mortality, length of stay in critical care or length of stay overall. CONCLUSION There was an overall decrease in major trauma cases during the lockdown period, particularly road traffic accidents and worksite injuries, and a relative increase in interpersonal violence. Redeployment of manpower and hospital resources may have contributed to decreased usage of trauma workflows and community facilities. In the event of further lockdowns, it is necessary to plan for trauma coverage and maintain the use of workflows to facilitate early intervention.
Humans ; COVID-19/epidemiology* ; Trauma Centers ; Retrospective Studies ; Singapore/epidemiology* ; Workload ; Communicable Disease Control