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The pong of poverty: George Orwell on the problem of olfactory classism

Throughout his fiction and non-fiction, George Orwell incorporated references to olfaction to invoke strong reactions in his readers. For example, in Nineteen Eighty-Four the protagonist Winston describes “the pleasant smell of [Julia’s] hair”. Orwell emphasises the invasiveness and emotional force...

Navigation in skull base surgery

Advances in navigation and augmented reality are transforming skull base surgery, offering greater precision and safety alongside emerging robotic tools. Surgical robots have been used in various forms across several surgical specialties for over 20 years [1,2]. However, it is...

The pioneers of endoscopy and the sword swallowers

Adolf Kussmaul drew inspiration from an unlikely source to further the development of endoscopy… The early pioneers of airway endoscopy and oesophagoscopy were bedevilled by two major and seemingly insurmountable problems. One was the paucity of light sources, with reliance...

Sybill Storz 1937 - 2025

Sybill Storz. Surrounded by her closest family, the internationally-renowned Tuttlingen entrepreneur Sybill Storz passed away peacefully on 28 November 2025 at the age of 88. Her family, all the employees, and the Supervisory Board of the family-owned MedTech company KARL...

Destination unknown

We as doctors do not always know the answer. Associate Professor Jacqueline Allen guides us through the importance of acceptance of this uncertainty and its complex mental journey. She highlights that, as clinicians, we must embrace the unknown and be...

A sound change: transitioning hearing healthcare to net-zero

Grassroot initiatives are often the most effective. When individuals come together and work with industry, changes are possible in reducing carbon emissions. This article summarises such an initiative working with companies to address Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) and Corporate...

In conversation with the editors of European Archives of ORL-HNS

The journal European Archives of ORL-HNS (EAORL) is a truly pan-European endeavour and has been hugely successful. With an Impact Factor (IF) of 2.6, it is now on a par with Laryngoscope. We spoke to some of the senior editors...

Monstrous craws and horrid butchery: a concise history of thyroid surgery

Prior to the foundation of our speciality, thyroid surgery had a dubious reputation and universally dismal outcomes. Jenny Walton casts a critical eye over this dark chapter. Diseases of the thyroid gland have been referenced in historic texts for well...

Laryngeal transplantation: is it a thing?

Few organs could be said to be more complex than the larynx when it comes to transplantation. Martin Birchall looks at past challenges, current issues and future prospects. I am not clear exactly why I chose to spend a life...