ENT features archive for July 2014
Thoughts on war: von Clausewitz revisited
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; For he to-day that sheds his blood with me Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile, This day shall gentle his condition: And gentlemen in England now a-bed Shall...
In search of courage; transition into Army
In search of courage. Well, that is how it all started. I was fairly advanced in surgical training not to mention age, when I decided to join the Territorial Army (TA). My peers, on hearing this couldn’t decide whether I...
Maxillofacial and neck surgery in Iraq and Afghanistan
Introduction Over the past 150 years, military personnel wounded in action had a survival rate of approximately 80% [1]. During the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, those servicemen wounded in action have a 90.4% survival rate [2]. During the...
Military otolaryngology and its impact on civilian trauma care
Over the centuries, military conflicts and wars have caused both death and injuries and led to improvements in the care of the combat wounded. Military otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeons have been at the forefront of these developments and advances. War...
Barotrauma
Barotrauma is an injury which is due to the effects of pressure upon an air-containing space. Healthy middle ear cavities and paranasal sinuses are normally in equilibrium with the atmospheric pressure, but if an individual moves away from the surface,...
Temporal bone trauma
Introduction Temporal bone injuries represent one of the more complex management problems presenting to the otolaryngologist. This is largely due to difficulties in assessment and the frequent delays in referral, often as a result of other injuries demanding more immediate...
Wound moisture sensing in traumatic wounds
Wounds can be small and unpleasant, or may be large and life-threatening. The skin is a physical and an immunological barrier to infection, and any defect in the integrity of the skin may enable bacterial or fungal invasion. The successful...
Effects of blast and acoustic trauma: assessment of hearing status on war veterans
Introduction Acoustical conditions of the military are often dangerous and there is a real risk of blast trauma and acoustic trauma [1, 2]. Levels of military noises maybe reach up to 125 dBA [3]. Weapons produce instant shock waves (10μs)...
Specialist teams deliver world-class trauma care
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust runs the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, which is a designated Major Trauma Centre. The Trust holds the contract to treat all UK injured military personnel evacuated from combat zones overseas. More than 1200 of...
Pre-hospital care
For those of us that work within the acute hospital system, the sound of the trauma pager going off warning of an incoming casualty with as yet unknown injuries is often the sound of uncertainty and anxiety. When it becomes...
From trauma to recovery: treatment at Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre
This year (2014) is the centenary year of the beginning of the Great War. This conflict brought with it a cluster of emotional disorders that were called at the time, Shell-Shock. The present conflict in Afghanistan has been talked of...
