Ph.d.-forsvar ved Suzan Al Kole

Om afhandlingen

Middle Ear (ME) cholesteatoma, a common inflammatory ME condition, involves abnormal growth of keratinized tissue inside the ME, leading to possible bone erosion. It's typically caused by abnormal 
negative pressure in the ME, forming retraction pockets and concurrent inflammation with repeated ME infections with otorrhea, potentially causing serious complications like hearing loss and  intracranial  issues.

Diagnosis can be difficult due to the complex anatomy of the ME, and MR scanning plays an increasingly important role. Treatment of ME cholesteatomas is exclusively surgical removal with reconstruction of ME structures, but recidivism is a major problem over time.

Study I: Focused on the preoperative use of PROPELLER DWI MR scannings, this study revealed a high diagnostic accuracy (89%) in identifying both primary and recurrent ME cholesteatomas. It emphasized the role of the Apparent Diffusion Coefficient (ADC) in enhancing the diagnostic precision.

Study II: This study examined the long-term effects of cholesteatoma  surgery including cases with mastoid obliteration. The overall rate of  recidivism was 9% with notable higher rates in children compared to adults. The importance of age and the type of cholesteatoma is underscored in determining the surgical outcomes and recidivism.

Study III: Investigating the efficacy of non-EPI DWI MR scanning in  long-term follow-up, this study showed a high accuracy in monitoring  cholesteatoma recidivism. This offered a significant advancement in postoperative assessments compared to second-look surgery.

Study IV: Focusing on post-surgical quality of life using the Glasgow  Benefit Inventory, this study established strong correlations between  subjective symptoms like otorrhea and hearing improvements against the overall quality of life. Such patient-reported outcome measures are equally important in long-term follow-up of cholesteatoma patients after surgery.

Tid og sted

Ph.d.-forsvaret finder sted torsdag den 15. februar kl. 14.00 i Medicinerhusets auditorium, Mølleparkvej 4 i Aalborg. Det vil være muligt at overvære forsvaret digitalt. Ønskes dette, så send en mail til  Mette Bjerre på m.bjerre@rn.dk. 

Vejledere og bedømmelsesudvalg

Vejledere

• Clinical Professor, PhD, MD, Michael Gaihede, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head& Neck Surgery and Audiology, Aalborg University Hospital and Aalborg University, Denmark (Hovedvejleder)
• Clinical Professor, PhD, MD, Jens Brøndum Frøkjær, Department of Radiology, Aalborg University Hospital and Aalborg University, Denmark
• Clinical Associate Professor, MD, Yousef Yavarian, Department of Radiology, Aalborg University Hospital and Aalborg University, Denmark

Bedømmelsesudvalg

• Clinical Professor, dr. med., PhD, Henrik Vorum (formand for bedømmelsesudvalget), Aalborg University, Denmark
• Clinical Professor, med. dr., Krister Tano, Umeå University, Sweden
• Clinical Associate Professor, PhD, Bjarki Ditlev Djurhuus, Copenhagen University, Denmark