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Prognostic value of vascular ultrasonographic findings in patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss

Sudden sensorineural hearing loss is often idiopathic. Although the aetiology of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL) is unclear, vascular compromise is one of the frequently proposed hypotheses to explain its pathophysiology. Existing studies have shown an association between ISSNHL...

Reducing the risk of Frey’s syndrome after parotidectomy – which methods are best?

Gustatory sweating or Frey’s syndrome is a well-recognised complication of parotid surgery. The reported incidence is highly variable, from 4% to 96%, with around 30% of patients reporting symptoms. A number of intraoperative techniques can be used to reduce the...

Reflux, a pre-disposing factor in paediatric OME?

It is almost 20 years since the Lancet publication by Tasker et al describing gastric juice in the glue ear of children. This paper attempts to look at the body of literature which has focused specifically on the clinical association...

NSC- HHT – a systematic review of intranasal Bevacizumab

This systematic review of 13 studies concerning the use of an anti-angiogenic nasal treatment in the management of epistaxis in HHT patients finds no significant effect. This paper looked at four RCTs, three prospective studies, three retrospective, one case series...

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...

Hilotherapy for facial surgery patients?

Hilotherapy involves administering regulated cold compression through a facemask. The principle of this treatment involves cyotherapy as a traditional treatment for reducing inflammation, pain and swelling following trauma. It is believed that using hilotherapy (Hilotherm®), which uses a mask to...

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...

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...

Deaf Culture: Exploring Deaf Communities in the United States

This book is intended as an introductory text for those studying deaf studies or American Sign Language in the USA. It is written by a mix of deaf and hearing authors and perhaps some of its shortcoming in feeling like...

Sublingual immunotherapy

This paper reviews the recent European studies on sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT). SLIT is currently widely used in Europe and is gaining popularity in the United States. It is known that longer treatment is needed with SLIT compared with subcutaneous immunotherapy...

Cuff up or cuff down; to occlude or not to occlude? What effect does tracheostomy tube modification have on swallowing outcomes?

Dysphagia is commonly seen in patients with tracheostomy. The current global pandemic has increased interest in the impact of a tracheostomy on swallowing outcomes. This systematic review is therefore a timely addition to the literature and a useful read for...