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Is one glass of wine on call safe?

It’s a standard question for those about to sit a Specialist Training (ST) interview; you are on call and you call a senior colleague in to perform an operation. You smell alcohol on the breath of the surgeon, so what...

What does an Olympic medal and surgery have in common?

Competing against female Eastern Bloc athletes in the 1980s was a thankless task, demanding a mulish tenacity in an often futile cause. Ideal preparation for a career in surgery? My path to medicine was unusual, in that I left school...

Detecting postoperative cholesteatoma with diffusion weighted magnetic resonance imaging

Middle ear cleft cholesteatoma is an inflammatory disease that erodes local bony structures and can cause otorrhea, hearing loss, vertigo and intracranial complications. It is usually treated with surgery, typically canal wall up (CWU) or canal wall down (CWD) surgery....

Head and neck cancer awareness

Head and neck cancer is one of the most preventable cancers, and awareness and screening campaigns have shown a decline in its incidence. Support for campaigns of awareness and education about these cancers is crucial from professional, societal and governmental...

Call to action: dysphagia matters

Dysphagia profoundly impacts quality of life. Multidisciplinary research, like the POuCH study, aims to improve understanding, diagnosis and treatment. We take for granted the simple joys of life – meeting over a cup of coffee, breaking bread with friends or...

The emotional weight of tinnitus

Health professionals often overlook the considerable impact tinnitus has on the individual, from its emotional burden to its complex relationship with the nervous system. Tinnitus, which is defined as the perception of sound without an external source, affects an estimated...

Does hand dominance impact ENT surgeons?

Recognising handedness could help create a more inclusive surgical environment. A team from Imperial College and Cambridge explores the challenges and practical solutions. Surgical disciplines require a high level of fine motor skills. Many procedures in ENT simultaneously challenge a...

Reflections on organising the British Academic Conference in Otorhinolaryngology 2015

As the Local Host and Programme Director of BACO 2015, Andrew Swift is a pivotal person with local knowledge and contacts. He provides us with some top tips as to how to go about organising a successful conference. The ACC...

Body self-image – the ENT perspective

Body dysmorphic disorder is a serious psychiatric condition that we all need to be aware of when contemplating aesthetic surgery. It can present in children as well as adults. Prof Vieira and Dr de Carvalho discuss the tell-tale signs and...

A patient-centred approach from the patient’s point of view

Seeking help for hearing loss is often a big step for patients. Shari Eberts, a hearing health advocate living with hearing loss, explains why, and gives us her five top tips to improve patient-centred care in such cases. Sensorineural hearing...