Journal Reviews
Can and should vestibular schwannoma surgery be carried out via the endoscopic transcanal approach?
The extent and scope of endoscopic ear surgery has rapidly progressed in recent years, and this paper, from one of the leading proponents of this technique, reports on the outcomes of a case series of patients who have had total...
A trial of house dust mite sublingual tablet in children with allergic rhinitis
The house dust mite (HDM) is one of the commonest causative agents in allergic rhinitis (AR), affecting patients across all demographics. Recently, sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT) has been shown in clinical trials and meta-analysis to be effective compared to placebo in...
Is there a role for facial nerve decompression in Ramsay Hunt syndrome?
This is an interesting paper. The authors recommend a transmastoid facial decompression for patients with complete facial nerve paralysis with House Brackman HB 5/6 who do not show any sign of recovery after two weeks of treatment following a diagnosis...
Superstructure-preserving stapes surgery in otosclerosis
Stapedectomy is a well-established procedure for otosclerosis but it has a small risk of a non-hearing ear, which can be devastating for patients. The development of a procedure which is safer and with a less steep learning curve for junior...
Consequences of Meniere’s Tumarkin crises
Many will be familiar with reports of frightening drop attacks without loss of consciousness experienced by some Meniere’s disease (MD) patients. This study analysed data from an electronic survey of over 600 members of a national Meniere’s society. The aim...
Peripheral nerve reconstruction using cell-enhanced acellular nerve grafts
Autologous nerve grafts are the current gold standard for peripheral nerve reconstruction. This systematic review analyses the role of cell-enhanced acellular nerve (ANA) grafts on the regeneration of peripheral nerve injuries. Several studies have been published to examine alternatives to...
DVT prophylaxis in cranial procedures
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a result of disturbed balances in blood flow patterns, blood clotting factors promoting coagulation and vessel wall endothelial injury. The subsequent disruption of coagulation and fibrinolysis mechanisms lead to venous clot formation and propagation. The...
How to tackle the problem of ciprofloxacin-resistant ear infections?
The growing issue of ciprofloxacin-resistant ear organisms is certainly a pertinent one. The situation here in the UK, where ototoxic topical drops are frequently given initially in the presence of pus and a perforation, differs markedly from elsewhere where fluoroquinolones...
Food impaction in children is associated with eosinophilic oesophagitis
There is an increasing amount of evidence to suggest that chronic oesophageal inflammation and motility disorders play a more significant role in oesophageal food impaction (EFI) in children compared to structural defects. The authors conducted a retrospective study of children...
Cerebrospinal fluid leaks after vestibular schwannoma surgery
This study analyses 30-day readmission data after vestibular schwannoma surgery using a multicentre longitudinal State of California dataset. The authors studied risk factors, and timing of readmission in 6820 patients over 15 years. Of these, 490 readmissions were reported for...
Aural fullness in Ménière’s disease
This survey of the Finnish Ménière’s Association aimed to examine the severity and consequences of aural fullness, the least reported cardinal symptom of Ménière’s disease. An initial pilot survey informed a second, restructured survey, giving a total of 726 respondents...
Clinical evaluation of an image-guided cochlear implant programming strategy
This study ingeniously combines two current areas of active research in cochlear implantation (CI), the first is the use of imaging to assess intra-cochlear electrode position. The second, is the optimisation of a programming strategy to prevent current spread between...
