Search

One anastomosis or two

This is a cumulative meta-analysis from Hong Kong reviewing 27 articles and a total of 7,389 flaps. The authors, at the outset, acknowledge that the number of anastomoses is not the only factor of venous compromise and flap failure. Nonetheless...

Medical trends in sleep disordered breathing

This duo provide an eloquent outline of sleep disordered breathing in general, with particular emphasis on the medical impact and associations of the condition. The increasing prevalence of the condition is described, with increasing worldwide obesity, increased association of cardiac...

Hearing protection and hearing loss

This study examined the interaction of hearing protection for noise reduction and hearing loss with speech recognition performance. Forty five subjects with four hearing loss profiles were fitted with two different level dependent hearing protectors (circumaural and inserts) in two...

Nasal decongestants don’t improve Eustachian tube function

Prescribing nasal steroids and decongestants. It’s something most of us do routinely, in an effort to reduce chronic middle ear effusion in an adult by trying to improve eustachian tube (ET) patency. This study used clever devices (tube manometry and...

Lingual tonsils and obstrucive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS)

Obstructive sleep apnoea can be due to narrowing of the retrolingual space by hypertrophic lingual tonsils. The authors studied 11 patients (five males and six females with a mean age of 44.3 years and a mean BMI of 28.6). All...

Cochlear implants and speech perception

Cochlear implants can be an effective treatment for specific hearing losses. They may often be the only way to restore hearing for profoundly deaf people. Therefore, it is very important to understand all processes that may influence effective fitting of...

Exciting advances in facial reanimation

Despite several techniques for reanimation after facial paralysis, the management of these patients continues to challenge us. This paper reviews advances in facial reanimation surgery, provides updates on the timing of intervention, modifications to the traditional gracilis muscle transfer, other...

It is all so COSI…

Something which we have realised for a long time in the UK is the importance of the clinician in the assessment and long-term adoption of hearing aids. This common sense article outlines the need for more individualised patient pathways, thinking...

Hearing impairment awareness in primary school teachers

Early intervention of hearing loss is crucial in school-age children to avoid delay in development of communication, cognition, language and social skills. Teachers play a crucial role in identification and support in cases of progressive or late-onset hearing loss. Using...