You searched for "trial"

1375 results found

Endoscopic sinus surgery improves Eustachian tube dysfunction

This prospective, multicentre trial from China looked at the improvement in Eustachian tube function after endoscopic sinus surgery. Seventy patients from three tertiary units were included in the study. They all completed the Eustachian tube dysfunction (ETDQ-7) and SNOT-22 questionnaires...

How can we manage children with poor speech discrimination but with normal audiogram

We often come across children and young adults brought in for consultation for suspected hearing loss and having hearing difficulty in noisy backgrounds but who often have normal audiograms. Such patients are suspected to have auditory neuropathy. The term auditory...

Reducing nasal changes in SARPE

This paper from Belgium highlights completing a sub-spinal cortectomy of the anterior nasal spine during the procedure of surgically assisted rapid palatal expansion (SARPE) as a means of reducing the alar and columella width as well as the nasolabial angle....

Does pregabalin help with post-tonsillectomy pain?

This is a small double-blind randomised controlled trial conducted on tonsillectomy and lateral pharyngoplasty operations. Both of these operations are terrifically painful, and I am sure most of us are looking for a way of reducing the suffering for our...

An effective treatment for post Covid-19 smell loss?

It is well understood that calcium levels in the nasal mucous affect the ability to smell, with higher levels having a negative impact, and some studies have shown increased calcium levels in patients suffering with Covid-19-related olfactory dysfunction. Calcium chelating...

Effect of swallowing exercises following free flap for oral cancer reconstruction

This paper from Beijing looked at 68 patients, 34 in a control group and 34 in an intervention group. Oral exercise training was performed by a specialist swallowing nurse in the intervention group. They found that personalised oral exercises had...

To pack or not to pack!

Ear packing is thought to support grafts, control bleeding and facilitate healing. However, it is not without complications such as fibrosis and infection. The authors aimed at investigating the effect of middle ear packing on graft success rate in myringoplasty...

Talk your brain well: discourse training to fortify your cognitive functioning and protect against dementia

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can be described as a transitional stage prior to a diagnosis of dementia. Approximately 15% of people with amnestic MCI (where memory is the leading symptom) develop dementia. Nonpharmacological interventions, specifically cognitive training, has shown some...

Office-based intralesional corticosteroids injections for subglottic stenosis. Is it effective?

Subglottic and proximal tracheal stenosis in adults has three main aetiologies: (a) prolonged endotracheal intubation; (b) idiopathic; (C) rheumatologic related. Endoscopic dilation is the mainstay treatment strategy for subglottic and proximal tracheal stenosis. Its major limitation is restenosis requiring repeated...

Hilotherapy for facial surgery patients?

Hilotherapy involves administering regulated cold compression through a facemask. The principle of this treatment involves cyotherapy as a traditional treatment for reducing inflammation, pain and swelling following trauma. It is believed that using hilotherapy (Hilotherm®), which uses a mask to...

Nasal steroids do not cause ocular problems

This excellent, high quality and detailed systematic review from Australia dispels the myth propagated recently by some poorly designed studies that intranasal corticosteroids cause intraocular problems. A 40 year review of the usual databases found 665 articles and 19 were...

Chemo-radiation in elderly patients with head and neck cancers

Chemo-radiotherapy is the standard of care for organ preservation in stage three and four oropharyngeal cancer, prospective data on patients over 65 has not been available as they are usually excluded from randomised trials. This paper reviews the experience of...