Journal Reviews
Platelet-rich plasma-cartilage tympanoplasty
This systematic review and meta-analysis of five studies (n=234 patients) reports the effectiveness of type I tympanoplasty with cartilage and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) compared with type I cartilage tympanoplasty alone for closure of dry tympanic membrane perforations. This is an...
Quicker than reading the BNF
It has long struck me that it might be helpful to search medication-induced side effects by symptom, rather than having to look up each individual drug. For many years, there have also been regularly cited categories of medications to be...
Ménière’s disease in today’s social media sphere
Social media is increasingly becoming the source of medical information for many. The authors analysed 1108 posts on Ménière’s disease on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, to determine the accuracy of content, authorship, depiction of Ménière’s disease and types of media...
Does surgical complexity influence hearing preservation after perimodiolar cochlear implantation?
In this prospective study, 34 adults underwent perimodiolar cochlear implantation with an extended round window approach. Three investigators reviewed fluoroscopic, electrocochleography (ECochG) and video data recorded simultaneously during the surgeries. Surgical complexity was also recorded as straightforward or complex. Residual...
Even titanium is not that inert
Titanium is part of most implantable metals in the human body including cochlear implants (CIs). Allergy to titanium is rare. The authors hypothesised that such an allergy could be a cause of pain in CI patients. They present a case...
Persistent postural perceptual dizziness following stroke: the risk factors
The primary motivation for the study, as stated by the authors, was that the factors behind persistent postural perceptual dizziness (PPPD) have not been clearly determined in stroke patients. To that end, a prospective study of adults presenting to a...
Where is that sound? Not every hot tub is a jacuzzi
Evidence suggests that the incidence of sound sensitivity and general noise intolerance is increasing. Studies have suggested that the incidence of hyperacusis is between 8% and 15.2% of the adult population. There is a correlation between the prevalence of hyperacusis...
Challenging steps of virtual cortical mastoidectomy
This prospective study investigated which steps of cortical mastoidectomy were challenging for 10 medical students and 10 intermediate surgeons (surgical trainees) compared to 10 experienced expert surgeons. Each participant performed cortical mastoidectomy on eight different virtual temporal bone models. The...
Does topical dual steroid therapy improve vertigo in refractory Ménière’s disease?
This prospective study investigated the role of simultaneous application of methylprednisolone and dexamethasone-soaked gelatin sponge to the endolymphatic sac surface and dexamethasone sponge to the short process of incus in 20 patients with refractory Ménière’s disease (MD) undergoing endolymphatic sac...
Bevacizumab, NF2, hearing and age
Introduction NF2-related schwannomatosis (NF2-SWN) is an autosomal dominant disorder leading to the development of schwannomas, meningiomas and spinal cord ependymomas. Younger age is a negative prognostic factor. Treatment includes observation, surgery, radiotherapy and medical therapy with bevacizumab (VEGF monoclonal antibody)....
Determinants influencing ageing within the vestibular system
The observation that ageing affects vestibular function is not new. However, using a whole population survey, the authors set out to evaluate quantitatively factors responsible for the age-related changes in vestibular function. As part of a national survey on health...
Migraine medication and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV)
BPPV is a very common form of dizziness (lifetime prevalence 2.4%) and has been noted to have an association with migraine. The cause of otoconia displacement in BPPV is often unclear. A vascular mechanism theory has been postulated in varying...
