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Balloon Eustachian tuboplasty

Eustachian tube dysfunction is a common condition, which is unfortunately lacking an effective treatment. This small study demonstrated the effectiveness of balloon Eustachian tuboplasty in a district hospital setting. It has been in use since 2010 and is beginning to...

Metaplasia of the concave septum

This group conducted a one year prospective study and sampled mucosa from 42 randomly selected patients with septal deviation at a single centre. They found significantly higher rate of squamous metaplasia and lymphocytic infiltration in septal mucosa on the concave...

Malignant change of pleomorphic adenoma

Pleomorphic adenoma is the most common salivary gland tumour. The potential to undergo malignant transformation is rare but well described. The authors of this article present a case report of metastasis where the preceding submandibular gland pleomorphic adenoma preserves its...

Keep the condyle if you can

This is a study of 41 patients who underwent benign tumour resection and reconstruction over a four year period. Patients fell into three groups; condyle preserved, condyle sacrificed, condyle frozen in combination with a DCIA free flap. Following this, they...

Preoperative planning of the surgical patient

This article covers the need to effectively optimise patient status preoperatively to help maximise postoperative outcomes. The article is well written and emphasises close liaison with anaesthetic colleagues particularly regarding airway assessment and nausea and vomiting. As is becoming common...

Don’t smoke after a septoplasty!

This is a retrospective review of 281 patients, all of whom underwent elective septoplasty. Simply put, those who smoked displayed a much higher postoperative septal perforation rate than those who did not. So, some cautionary advice for patients undergoing this...

A bittersweet finding

This is an elegant study, documenting the role of, and activation of, nitrous oxide in chronic sinusitis. Bitter taste receptors (TR2) have recently been identified as novel ‘players’ in sinonasal innate immunity and in chronic rhinosinusitis. The receptors are triggered...

Power tools dance off

The use of the harmonic scalpel is popular with some head and neck surgeons. This study looked at selective neck dissections for 40 patients with oral cavity carcinoma. They were randomised into harmonic scalpel (HS) use and monopolar electrocautery. The...

Are imaging studies necessary in uncomplicated headaches?

Over-imaging is one of the banes of modern medicine. One may argue that in this litigious atmosphere it is safer to get an MRI done rather than not. Despite the recommendations of the American Headache Society and the American College...

First signs of late nodal metastases

This is a retrospective review of 65 patients who had late metastases during follow-up after initial curative treatment. They analyse the detection methods of palpation, ultrasound, CT and subjective symptoms. Palpation detected the nodes in 31 patients, ultrasound in 17,...

Drinks in Newcastle, Australia

This paper assesses patients presenting with oral and maxillofacial trauma over a 13-year period spanning January 2003 to December 2015. During this period of time, in March 2008, trading hours and conditions of service were restricted within the Newcastle central...

Basic principles of bioengineering and regeneration

The ability to create de novo tissue to replace that removed from patients during surgery is a relatively recent advance. However, this is a fast-moving field and one which surgeons must be aware of from practical, ethical and scientific viewpoints....