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Did you ever meet Draffin on your travels?

Draffin’s rods or bipods are a well-known ENT instrument. Before their invention in 1951, the attendant anaesthetist or nurse was obliged to support the mouthgag during tonsillectomy. Their originator, David Alexander Draffin (born in 1917 in Ballybey, Co Monaghan), was...

The golden nose – reshaping the nose 100 years ago

Wolf Lűbbers (with the golden nose). Who with a crooked nose would not embrace the chance to go to bed in the evening wearing a surgical device and wake up the following morning with a straight one? And all this...

History of ENT - Freud's Friend, Fliess

Wilhelm Fliess, a Berlin rhinologist, was for many years Sigmund Freud’s closest friend and confidant. He was born in Poland in 1858. In 1887, he visited Vienna for postgraduate studies, and met the famous psychoanalyst, Freud [1]. They were immediate...

The first compact auriscope: the 1865 speculum auris of Dr Brunton

Bringing light into darkness can also be a task for the physician. With the advent of endoscopy (initially by reflecting light into body cavities), new methods of diagnosis and treatment became available to the otologist. In 1865, the Scotsman John...

The pong of poverty: George Orwell on the problem of olfactory classism

Throughout his fiction and non-fiction, George Orwell incorporated references to olfaction to invoke strong reactions in his readers. For example, in Nineteen Eighty-Four the protagonist Winston describes “the pleasant smell of [Julia’s] hair”. Orwell emphasises the invasiveness and emotional force...

A funny thing happened whilst your boss was away at a conference

What is the difference between God and Professor Sir Donald Harrison? God is everywhere – Sir Donald is everywhere except at the Royal National Throat Nose and Ear Hospital! This was a common joke about Sir Donald, who was much...

Planes, trams, and auditoriums: Beware predatory conferencing

Predatory conferences are a growing concern. First highlighted in our sister magazine, Eye News*, the issue affects all areas of medicine – including ENT and audiology. With inboxes filling up with flattering invitations to ‘global’ meetings in glamorous destinations, it’s...

Planes, trams, and auditoriums: Beware predatory conferencing

Predatory conferences are a growing concern. First highlighted in our sister magazine, Eye News*, the issue affects all areas of medicine – including ENT and audiology. With inboxes filling up with flattering invitations to ‘global’ meetings in glamorous destinations, it’s...

Is there a doctor in the house?

Occasionally at medical meetings, a member of the audience will be unfortunate enough to fall ill. An elderly ex-obstetrician of the Queen had a transient ischaemic attack at the podium of the Royal Society of Medicine in front of a...

BIHIMA calls for minimum standard for assistive listening systems in theatres

Most theatres use assistive listening systems, but according to the British Irish Hearing Instrument Manufacturers Association (BIHIMA), this does not always ensure a good experience for audiences with hearing loss.

From the editor Jan/Feb 2025

Declan Costello, MA, MBBS, FRCS(ORL-HNS),Consultant Ear, Nose and Throat Surgeon, Wexham Park Hospital, Slough, Berkshire, UK. E: d.costello@nhs.netTW / X: @Voicedoctor_uk As we slip seamlessly into the new year, I hope you have all had a good break and that...

Is one glass of wine on call safe?

It’s a standard question for those about to sit a Specialist Training (ST) interview; you are on call and you call a senior colleague in to perform an operation. You smell alcohol on the breath of the surgeon, so what...