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How to deliver bad news better

Delivering bad news well takes experience and time. The Ida team recommend the SPIKES protocol; providing structure for relaying bad news, giving confidence to those delivering it, and leaving recipients feeling cared for and informed. It’s among the most distressing...

Recent advances in the diagnosis of silent reflux

The vexed topic of reflux always generates much discussion, particularly when it comes to testing. We hear about a non-invasive assay that is gaining in popularity. Voice disorders impact around four percent of the UK population and can significantly hamper...

Targeting the microbiome in chronic rhinosinusitis

Researchers at St Paul’s Sinus Centre and UBC in Vancouver are testing a novel treatment for CRS: transferring mucus from a healthy donor into a patient’s sinuses. Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is one of the most common diseases managed by otolaryngologists...

Addressing the non-use of hearing aids

We all know non-use of hearing aids occurs, but why, and what can we do about it? Numerous studies have investigated the challenges surrounding the underutilisation of hearing aids, examining factors such as reluctance to seek assistance, the impact of...

Patient and public involvement in research

One step further from involving patients in setting research priorities is to involve them in the planning and recruitment stages of the subsequent trials and studies. Here, Carl Philpott and Aneeka Degun explain the concept of Patient and Public Involvement...

Harnessing head and neck cancer genomics for personalised medicine

Luc Morris updates us on the future of cancer diagnosis and treatment, which lies in “personalised oncology”, where specific molecular alterations of each tumour will be identified, and matched with actionable alterations in existing therapies, ushering in the era of...

Timing of surgery in chronic rhinosinusitis: does it matter?

While many patients with chronic rhinosinusitis respond to medical treatment, some do not. The next step for these patients is surgery, but how soon should this be offered? Sooner rather than later seems to be the answer, as Claire Hopkins...

Recalcitrant chronic rhinosinusitis: What to do next?

Whilst the majority of patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) will significantly improve with treatment, we are sometimes left with a ‘hard-core’ of nasal cripples who fail to improve despite our best efforts. How can we deal with these patients? Valerie...

Audiological evaluation and management of teenagers with tinnitus

There is a growing interest in investigating, understanding and managing tinnitus in children and adolescents, with several articles on the subject published in journals over the last year. Brian Fligor describes the approaches to consider when discussing tinnitus with teenagers....

Rhinoplasty: state-of-the-art

Rhinoplasty surgery has evolved over the years, and Pietro Palma introduces a further new concept. When flicking through the topics of major rhinoplasty meetings, the astute observer will realise that, at present, there are two mainstream schools of rhinoplasty, which...

Improving cochlear-implant performance in the short- and medium-term

Can bespoke cochlear implant programming strategies reduce the variability seen in patient performance with an implant? Bob Carlyon reviews the current situation and gives us a glimpse of the future. Although many cochlear implant (CI) patients understand speech well in...