Journal Reviews
Traditional incision and drainage of a quinsy may be more efficacious than aspiration
Peritonsillar abscess drainage has always been one of the first procedures an ENT junior doctor performs. Traditionally incision and drainage (I&D) was the mainstay of treatment. In recent years, needle aspiration of the abscess has become much more commonplace, perhaps...
Clinical histopathology of 250 parotidectomy patients
Clinical histopathology of 250 parotidectomy patients This is a retrospective study of 250 consecutive parotidectomy patients at units in Belgium and the Netherlands. The sensitivity and specificity of FNAC was 64% and 99% respectively, the sensitivity being slightly lower than...
Instrument assessment preferable over standard beside swallow to determine prevalence of aspiration
Aspiration does not trigger the protective cough response in some patients. The patient’s response may vary according to fluid viscosities and volume. The authors of this prospective study investigated the prevalence of aspiration and response to aspiration of different viscosities...
The lateral neck cystic mass – diagnostic dilemma. Can HPV status help?
Solitary cystic masses in the lateral neck can present a significant diagnostic dilemma as they can be metastases from tumours of the oro or nasopharynx. This retrospective paper detailed all patients presenting to a university hospital in Germany, from September...
Using evidence and international consensus to guide treatment of thyroid nodules
The authors of this practical review paper highlight a growing issue within thyroid surgery, where high-quality ultrasound has increased the detection of subclinical nodules: what do we do with the patient presenting with an ‘incidental’ thyroid nodule? This has both...
Applying ‘Sal classification’ to parotid cytology to replicate the success of the Thy classification system
The usefulness of the Thy classification in thyroid gland disease has led to attempts to generate a similar cytology classification for parotid lesions. However, the accuracy of fine-needle aspiration cytology in salivary gland disease is more variable because of the...
Post-thyroidectomy vocal cord palsy: are there long-term sequelae?
This is a well written paper utilising the Hospital Episode Statistics dataset for all thyroidectomies performed in England between 2004 and 2012. The study had a very impressive 43,515 participants and only included young, fit patients undergoing thyroidectomy once for...
Expanding the role of FNA in thyroid nodule decision-making
Papillary thyroid cancer, the commonest histological type, has been extensively reported as having BRAF proto-oncogene mutations (most commonly the V600E mutation). There is great interest in BRAF as a molecular marker, particularly as a prognostic factor that may guide the...
The right kit matters… How important is video recording in FEES?
As a portable alternative to videofluoroscopy, fibreoptic endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) is often carried out at the patient’s bedside. The authors of this paper have chosen to examine the reliability of the penetration-aspiration ratings (Rosenbek scale) of FEES examinations...
