Journal Reviews
Management of oral white patches with malignant potential
This paper focuses on a rare but aggressive form of leukoplakia with malignant potential and is an important reminder of the need for specialist management to those in allied specialties such as ENT that may initially be referred these oral...
Post-operative tonsillectomy bleeding with a normal clinical exam
Tonsillectomy is amongst the most common surgical procedures performed across the western world. For patients who report bleeding post-tonsillectomy, but have no clinical findings on examination, the management can be unclear. The accepted current management in most centres would be...
Should patients with dysphagia be allowed water freely?
Patients with dysphagia often experience dehydration as a consequence of “nil by mouth” or having to consume thickened fluids due to aspiration of thin fluids. However, not all incidents of aspiration develop into an infection. Factors that contribute to aspiration...
Increased intensity of treatment: intensity does not improve outcomes
There is a paucity of reports regarding the intensity and appropriate duration of treatment required to improve the language abilities of children with language impairment. This study used direct measures such as the time spent on language, the frequency, number...
A comparison between ultrasonography-guided drainage with open surgical drainage of deep neck space abscesses
A comparison between ultrasonography-guided drainage with open surgical drainage of deep neck space abscesses Neck space abscesses are common; conventional drainage involves intra-oral or extra-oral approaches. The former can compromise the airway and the latter can cause neurovascular injuries, scarring...
Sublingual house dust mite immunotherapy
House dust mite immunotherapy in allergic rhinitis was shown to be effective in trials with a relatively small number of participants. The authors of this study performed a multicentre double-blind randomised controlled trial to investigate effects of house dust mite...
Planning for end of life care: is there a role for the speech and language therapist?
This article presents a scoping review of the research literature on the role of speech and language therapists in palliative care settings. The researchers conducted a search using several electronic databases focusing on palliative, terminal and end of life (EOL)...
A comparison of same day with staged bilateral cartilage graft tympanoplasty for tubotympanic CSOM
This randomised, controlled study compares the tympanoplasty outcomes in two groups of patients: one undergoing bilateral tympanoplasty on the same day (18 patients, 36 ears) and the other having the same procedure done on different days, with a gap of...
Positive practical communication skills for medics
Communication training for medical students generally focuses on communicating with unimpaired individuals. This article describes how a speech and language therapy department at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden trialled a new approach to teaching medical students. Fifty-nine undergraduate medical...
Comparison of linguistic profiles in three groups of children with hearing loss and specific language impairment
Spoken language deficits in children with hearing loss early in life are attributed to auditory speech perception limitations. It is assumed that hearing following cochlear implants (CIs) will improve these language deficits. However, the studies have shown that although cochlear...
Cartilage myringoplasty to treat patulous eustachian tube dysfunction
Patulous eustachian tube (PET) dysfunction, where the eustachian tube is abnormally opened at rest, is a notoriously difficult condition to treat. Symptoms can mimic symptoms of superior semicircular canal dehiscence: autophony, aural fullness, hyperacusis and breathing synchronous tinnitus. Treatment has...
Does ‘weekend effect’ alter post tonsillectomy haemorrhage rates?
Staffing levels are generally low over the weekends and senior physicians are less easily available. It is generally believed that this affects patients undergoing high-risk surgery. Whether doing tonsillectomy at weekends adds to the risks of post tonsillectomy haemorrhage is...
