Journal Reviews archive for 2014
Are biofilms present in deep neck abscesses?
Why are some cervical abscesses resistant to antibiotic treatment? The authors postulate that a biofilm develops to allow the bacteria to overcome normal host defences. They investigated the micro-environment of deep neck abscesses in a largely paediatric cohort. Biopsies of...
Cheek reconstruction following melanoma excision
Malignant melanoma occurs most commonly on the cheek and thus is usually diagnosed early, and rarely needs large reconstructions for advanced disease. This is a retrospective study looking at 26 patients that had undergone treatment for cheek melanomas between 1996...
Extranodal natural killer / T-cell lymphoma in the head and neck
The authors present a retrospective single institution review of patients with a very rare variant of non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). They report on the occurrence, clinical course and outcomes of their patients with natural killer / T-cell lymphoma (NKTCL) nasal type....
‘Dead ear’ after mastoid surgery
The primary aim of surgery in the management of cholesteatoma is eradication of the disease which can potentially result in serious complications such as intracranial extension, facial nerve weakness and further hearing loss. A profound hearing loss resulting postoperatively considerably...
Can smaller cancer centres deliver high quality care for patients with laryngeal cancer?
There is a continuing conflict between treating patients as close to their homes as possible and centralising specialised services, taking into consideration the critical mass and the multi-disciplinary expertise available. This is a report of outcomes in the treatment of...
Hearing loss in the contralateral ear after mastoid drilling
It is difficult to conceive that most of the noise generated by drilling the mastoid would not be conveyed to the contralateral cochlea, by direct transmission through the skull bone, where the attenuation factor is only 5-10 dB. Only a...
Noise induced hearing loss caused by nightclubs
Legislation on hearing loss and tinnitus, occurring due to noise exposure at work, has been well established in terms of protection and compensation, but the same damage resulting from noise in nightclubs remains an open issue. This study, based on...
Clinical value of 3 T magnetic resonance imaging after intratympanic gadolinium injection in cases of delayed endolymphatic hydrops
Recurrent vertigo can continue after severe unilateral or bilateral hearing loss. This is a condition similar to Ménière’s disease, the diagnosis of which can be difficult. In this study intratympanic injection of gadolinium-diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid dimeglumine was done in 25...
Precautions to be taken in cosmetic facial surgery
In this comprehensive write-up on precautionary measures to be taken when doing cosmetic surgery on our patients, the authors begin by emphasising that facial plastic surgery is no longer limited to celebrities and the privileged. It has extended into everyday...
Medical information required with requests for CT scans of the temporal bones; a two cycle audit
It is a common experience that radiology reports on the CT scans of the temporal bones do not always reach a diagnosis. Various studies have produced differing results in that detailed information may not be necessary to help reach a...
A diagnostic survey of dizziness
The prevalence of self-reported dizziness and that requiring medical consultation is remarkably high. Cardiac and neuropathic comorbidities, often associated with these patients confuse the diagnosis. In this multicentre study, the prevalence and characteristics of various diagnostic groups, for example, Benign...
Post tonsillectomy recovery in thermal welding method compared with recovery in cold steel method
Many different methods for tonsillectomy have emerged but whether they provide an improvement over the traditional cold steel tonsillectomy is another matter. Thermal welding is a recent method of tonsillectomy in which the tissues are simultaneously coagulated and divided. In...
