You searched for "pharyngeal"

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Increasing tongue strength to reduce dysphagia: what is the potential benefit of a device driven exercise?

Weakness in tongue muscle strength and laryngeal elevation is known to have an adverse impact on swallowing function. Various swallowing exercises are often recommended to improve function of these important structures with the goal of preventing aspiration and improving swallow...

Bamboo nodes – a case series

Bamboo nodes are band-like, cream-coloured submucosal deposits affecting the middle third of the vocal cord. They are reported to affect women exclusively and are frequently bilateral but can be asymmetrical. They are distinct from vocal cord nodules but can be...

Effects of coronavirus pandemic on presentation of head and neck cancer patients

The COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented disruption of NHS services. This was compounded by patients’ reluctance to attend hospitals at that time. How this affected the presentation of patients with head and neck cancer is the subject of this study. Head...

Button batteries – how can we reduce harm to children?

This article explores the history of button batteries and how clinicians and industries alike could reduce the harm to children following ingestion. Following ingestion, if lodged, button batteries cause an alkaline reaction leading to necrosis of mucosa. Significant oesophageal injury...

Bothersome ‘burping’ – speech therapy may help

Most people experience belching as a normal phenomenon, often after eating or drinking carbonated drinks in particular. However, separate to this normal physiological phenomenon, some people experience belches that can occur much more frequently (up to 20 times a minute)...

Iatrogenic vocal fold paralysis – the time to recovery

Iatrogenic vocal fold paralysis can result from stretching, compression or complete transection of recurrent laryngeal or vagus nerves. These injuries are a significant source of concern for patients and clinicians alike. The question is how long should we wait for...

KTP laser ablation for early glottic cancer

TLM for glottic carcinoma has historically been performed with a carbon dioxide (CO2) laser. A much smaller literature base has examined the use of potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) laser in this context. This retrospective chart review aims to fill that...

Beware the skinny patient…

The adverse health impacts of an excessive BMI are well known. This study highlights one laryngeal pathology for which a low BMI appears to be a significant risk factor. The records of 28 patients treated for arytenoid cartilage dislocation were...

Should we routinely perform steroid injections following microlaryngeal excision of benign lesions?

This retrospective cohort study assessed a single surgeon’s outcomes before and after the routine administration of intralesional triamcinolone following microsurgical removal of benign vocal fold lesions (polyps, nodules and cysts). A total of 211 patients were recruited for the study....

Choosing instrumental assessments of swallowing for children

Swallowing disorders in children are increasingly common due to advances in medical care allowing them to survive prematurity or complex health conditions. Careful assessment of eating and drinking is necessary to ensure that children are managed both safely and with...

What is the optimum duration of voice rest after microlaryngoscopy procedures?

Recent survey data looking at the opinions and practices of otolaryngologists in the US and the UK demonstrate that there is a wide variation in recommendations made for voice rest after vocal fold surgery. In the US, the most common...

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...