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Deep space neck infections – salivary gland as source is commoner in elderly patients

Whilst deep space neck infections (DNI) can originate from many sources, dental and salivary glands are commonly the culprit. This paper details 44 patients treated for deep space neck infections originating from salivary gland and compares them to a previously...

Marshmallows for swallowing assessments!

The complaint of ‘food sticking in my throat’ is one many of us will have heard several times in clinical practice. The authors of this study report the prevalence of this symptom to be between 5-8% in the general population...

Incidental thyroid nodules: should we observe or operate?

Thyroid nodules are extraordinarily prevalent, detected by physical examination in 7% and by imaging studies in 67% of the population. Although most of these nodules are benign, up to 20% are found to be malignant on excision. It’s a very...

Use of topical steroids and antibiotics, compared to systemic antibiotics in the treatment of acute rhinusinusitis

Acute rhinusinusitis is mainly initiated by viral infections. Bacterial infection is usually superadded. The inflammatory cascade upregulates the pro-inflammatory mediators resulting in pain, nasal obstruction and nasal discharge. Local application of steroids and antibiotics could provide a higher concentration of...

Voice therapy is an effective treatment for presbyphonia

The quality of an individual’s voice often declines with age. This deterioration occurs firstly as a result of vocal fold atrophy secondary to histologic alteration of the vocal fold mucosa as well as atrophy of the laryngeal musculature. Phonatory efficiency...

Is there a ‘best’ ventilation tube?

Studies on grommet materials and sizes are not exactly new but this was a well-designed randomized study in Sweden with some useful findings. The extrusion rate and complications associated with four different ventilation tubes (grommets) were assessed prospectively in 400...

Complication rates for grommet insertion in H&N cancer patients

Otitis Media (OM) can be the direct result of H&N malignancy itself or secondary to treatment of malignancy. Both surgery and radiotherapy can cause lasting changes to the physiologic function of the ET, middle ear, tympanic membrane and ear canal....

Cochlear implant electrode insertion technique

Atraumatic cochlear implant insertion techniques (so-called ‘soft surgery’) are now standard practice in most centres for all cases (no longer just for attempted hearing preservation cases). This has led to several studies examining cochlear trauma and electrode insertion force. In...

OTO-104 in noise-induced and cisplatin-induced hearing loss

These two animal studies report on potential new applications for intra-tympanic OTO-104, a slow-release hydrogel formulation of dexamethasone that is currently being used in a Europe-wide randomised trial for Ménière’s disease. In the first paper, guinea pigs were given a...

Laser for active mucosal chronic otitis media

Active mucosal chronic otitis media (COM) is a condition characterised by otorrhoea secondary to chronic inflammation of the middle ear and mastoid mucosa associated with granulations and a tympanic membrane perforation. Surgical intervention is often required, but concurrent mastoidectomy with...

Fingernail for orbital floor reconstruction

Orbital damage is common in maxillofacial injuries and about half of them result in damage to the orbital floor. Suitable material that could be used for repairing the orbital floor includes autografts, allografts and alloplastic materials. The disadvantage of using...

Radiation-induced dysphagia in head and neck cancer

This is a helpful reference paper that provides an overview of the biomolecular effects of radiation on the tissues of the upper aero-digestive tract. The authors explain that radiation injuries occur in a repetitive and accruing manner over the duration...