Journal Reviews archive for September 2015
Hearing preservation after Gamma knife in vestibular schwannomas
This retrospective study reports the outcomes of hearing preservation up to three years after Gamma knife radiosurgery for Gardner-Robertson Class I (SDS>70% and PTA <30dB) patients with vestibular schwannomas. The authors report that patients with no subjective or objective hearing...
Rare, aggressive pituitary adenomas
This is a review article on published cases of the rare Crooke’s pituitary adenoma. These tumors are usually invasive and may be clinically aggressive; they may be endocrinologically silent or may produce adrenocorticotropic hormone causing Cushing’s disease. They often recur...
Approaching a ranula
The March issue of Operative Techniques in Otolaryngology is the first of two concentrating on oral surgery within the paediatric setting. It sets the scene with a paper on the anatomy of the paediatric oral cavity and the associated surgical...
Surgery for drooling
This paper looks at the surgical options for sialorrhoea once the first two options of behavioural and physiotherapy interventions and pharmacotherapy have been exhausted. The social impact of sialorrhoea on patients and their families is significant and often lifelong therefore...
Is submandibular gland transfer effective in prevention of post irradiation xerostomia in head and neck cancer patients?
Post irradiation xerostomia is a common side effect of irradiation to the head and neck region, with up to 90% of patients reporting some symptoms. Submandibular glands account for 70% of resting saliva production. Surgically transferring the submandibular gland to...
Paediatric salivary gland tumours
This is a review article of a rare group of neoplasms that frequently present as painless preauricular mass in older children. There is a wide differential including first branchial arch abnormalities, inflammatory and granulomatous processes. Those masses that are painless,...
When ears go bad
Whilst rare, squamous cell carcinoma is the commonest primary malignancy of the temporal bone and is discussed in this review article. This tumour frequently presents with otalgia, ottorhoea and hearing loss; less commonly, with facial palsy or parotid mass. Investigations...
Coblation versus microdebrider submucosal inferior turbinoplasty
This prospective randomised study from Riyadh compares submucosal coblation and submucosal microdebrider inferior turbinate reduction. Seventy patients were recruited who had failed medical treatment and were undergoing isolated inferior turbinate surgery. Outcome measures included the Friedman score and VAS for...
Clonidine based vs Remifentanil based hypotensive anaesthesia in FESS
A study investigating the use of clonidine preoperatively in FESS surgery. A double blinded trial of 47 patients in Barcelona randomised into receiving clonidine (20 minutes preoperatively) versus Remifentanil (continuous infusion). Propofol and fentanyl were used for induction and then...
