Journal Reviews
Eosinophilic or not eosinophilic: dupilumab seems to work
Chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP) is a type 2 inflammation with interleukin (IL)-4, IL-13, and IL-5. Tissue eosinophilia in nasal polyps dramatically increased over a 10-20-year period. Classification of the severity of eosinophil status is expected to lead to...
Location, location, location: How to get the steroid where you need it, in chronic rhinosinusitis
What almost all current guidelines on chronic rhinosinusitis have in common is the importance of intranasal steroid (INCS) use. However, it is increasingly understood that the efficacy of INCS depends on their efficient delivery to the point of need, i.e....
Narrow band imaging in laryngopharyngeal reflux
Narrow band imaging (NBI) is a tool on the Olympus endoscopic systems that uses blue and green wavelengths to enhance visualisation of mucosal vasculature. It has been used to aid in the early diagnosis of upper aerodigestive tract cancers. A...
CRSwNP, another monoclonal antibody
Interleukins 4, 5 and 13 were shown to be important factors in type 2 inflammation, which characterises chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyposis (CRSwNP). In CRSwNP non-responders and those who recur short after-surgery monoclonal antibodies might be an answer. Examples include...
CRSwNP and smell – is it just the obstruction?
Anosmia and hyposmia are symptoms of CRS both with and without nasal polyps and can significantly affect quality of life. The nature of anosmia/hyposmia is thought to be both sensory-neural and conductive. These authors studied a mouse model in which...
Interleukins, cilia and polyps
Interleukins (ILs) including IL13 (Th2 cytokine) are inflammatory mediators and their role in asthma has been detailed before. This study explores IL13 receptor expression in chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP). The authors investigate protein and mRNA expression levels of...
Metaplasia of the concave septum
This group conducted a one year prospective study and sampled mucosa from 42 randomly selected patients with septal deviation at a single centre. They found significantly higher rate of squamous metaplasia and lymphocytic infiltration in septal mucosa on the concave...
A new biomarker for chronic rhinosinusitis
This Chinese study looked at the feasibility of periostin (usually found in bone and lung tissue) as a biomarker for chronic rhinosinusitis. They sampled ethmoid mucosa in 12 patients with chronic rhinosinusitis without nasal polyposis (CRSsNP) and 25 patients with...
The impact of rhino-sinusitis treatment on olfaction
This study included 28 adults prospectively enrolled between March 2011 and May 2013 into a non-randomised, multi-institutional cohort. Adults electing endoscopic sinus surgery experienced gains in olfaction comparable to adults electing continued medical management. The evidence in this study comparing...
Inflammation associated with presbyacusis
Inflammaging and presbyacusis is a topic that few audiologists consider in their daily clinical routine due to lack of training in this area. Inflammaging is a chronic state of inflammation present throughout the body. The classic 1965 work by Rosen...
