Microvascular free flaps are commonly used in reconstruction for head and neck defects. Failures of these flaps, however, are associated with a significant morbidity and mortality. Flap failures within the first 72 hours are commonly attributed to technical failure of...
This is a pragmatic article on a difficult and much debated subject. Management of anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC) can feel like making decisions between a rock and a hard place, and this article suggests one path to help navigate some...
Allergic rhinitis (AR) affects up to 14.6% of the paediatric population. Whilst a recent Cochrane review has considered the evidence for intranasal corticosteroids as `weak and unreliable’ in paediatric AR, this product is a novel formulation combining Fluticasone and Azelastine...
Over the last few weeks, I have had the pleasure of exploring a modern-day surgical social media platform through the innovative SurgeOn app – launched in the UK in January 2025 after seeing success in the US. SurgeOn is easily...
“It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge” says Peter Rea in his foreword to this book. He is quoting Albert Einstein, of course, and also introducing this book with a delightfully...
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...
Stapedectomy is a well-established procedure for otosclerosis but it has a small risk of a non-hearing ear, which can be devastating for patients. The development of a procedure which is safer and with a less steep learning curve for junior...
Videofluoroscopy is one of the main instrumental tools used to assess swallowing biomechanics and physiology. In the UK, it is mainly within the remit of speech and language therapists (SLT) to perform videoswallows but there is considerable variability in both...
This Japanese retrospective study looked at whether the dosage of prednisolone affects the response rate in patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss. The authors included a total of 159 patients over a 14-year period who were treated with 200mg/day...
The variation in size and site of nasal cutaneous tumours allows the surgeon to propose various methods to close the resulting defect post-tumour excision. This prospective multicentre cohort study executed in China encompassed 150 patients, comparing wound healing times and...
The Department of Health and Social Care has published the ‘Kingdon Review of Children’s Hearing Services: Final Report’, led by Dr Camilla Kingdon, President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.