Week 6 Jess Orton

Last week of immersion! This week was extra chaotic as I volunteered to assist with a virtual camp that my PI back in Ithaca is putting on for high schoolers. I was still able to attend office hours in the clinic and finish up a few things in the lab but I was unable to make it into the OR this week. In the clinic we saw two different acoustic neuroma patients this week which was very interesting as I had seen another acoustic neuroma patient in the OR a few weeks earlier. Acoustic neuromas are rare benign tumors that form on the cochlear nerves. Often when they are removed the cranial nerves, which animate the face, are severed causing varying degree's of facial paralysis. Dr. Spector then comes in and attempts to reconnect the nerves to restore some movement. It was really interesting to see the three different patients, as they had undergone different surgeries, had different degrees of paralysis, and were at different stages post op. 

The original acoustic neuroma patient I saw in the OR was undergoing revision surgery to enhance her mobility. She had her neuroma removed about 10 years prior and at that time the procedure of choice to attempt to restore movement in the face was to attempt to connect the cranial nerve on the other side of the face to the dysfunctional one. This was able to alleviate some of the paralysis but was not the best choice as it takes a very long time for movement to be restored and it is often still limited. It was interesting to hear about the evolution of the surgical techniques used to treat the facial paralysis, yet there is still much that can be improved upon in terms of reconnecting the nerves.

While I don't think I want to live in NYC, I did enjoy my time in the city and will miss the expansive public transportation network. I didn't get to all the items on my NYC to do list, but I wanted to leave a few things to do for when I come back to visit. Pictured below is the Weill Cornell Imaging department social event at City Vineyard, which features fantastic sunset views and wonderful crab cakes.



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