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Healthcare Disparities in Otolaryngology

The topic of this book seems timely given the increasing focus in recent years on equality and prevention of discrimination. But my initial reaction was, do we need a 300-page textbook on this topic? Is there so much to say?...

To monitor the nerves or not?

Whilst intraoperative nerve monitoring has become the standard of care for mastoid and parotid surgery, its benefit in thyroid surgery remains unclear. In the UK NICE was agnostic on the subject in 2008, stating that it was potentially helpful and...

Predicting postoperative respiratory complications following paediatric adenotonsillectomy

This systematic review aimed to compare the presence of clinical features versus the polysomnography results in predicting major postoperative respiratory complications in children undergoing adenotonsillectomy for OSA. The study was prepared according to the PRISMA checklist. Overall 22 studies met...

A comparison of same day with staged bilateral cartilage graft tympanoplasty for tubotympanic CSOM

This randomised, controlled study compares the tympanoplasty outcomes in two groups of patients: one undergoing bilateral tympanoplasty on the same day (18 patients, 36 ears) and the other having the same procedure done on different days, with a gap of...

Does endoscopic stapling for pharyngeal pouch supersede open repair?

Endoscopic stapling for pharyngeal pouch is generally considered to be less invasive, safe and with fewer complications, resulting in quicker recovery and a shorter hospital stay. Whether these factors hold in the long-term follow-up is the subject of this interesting...

The perils of poor postop blood pressure control

This retrospective case control study reviews 621 patients undergoing thyroid surgery over a 10-year period from 2002-2012 looking at postoperative haemorrhage rates. This potentially catastrophic complication warrants close analysis in order to best discern how it can be minimised. The...

A review of DISE classification systems

This article looks at the wide variety of classification systems currently available for interpreting drug induced sleep endoscopy (DISE).The fact that there are so many classification systems, suggests that there is: A) a lot of disagreement about how DISE should...

Amount of dietary iodine and thyroid cancer

Two molecular scientists from Zurich wrote this paper as a systematic review, asking the question of whether dietary iodine intake is a risk factor for developing thyroid cancer later on life. They speculate that low iodine intake is a risk...

Peritonsillar abscess - an indication for tonsillectomy?

Extension of infection beyond the tonsil results in a peritonsillar abscess and is a frequent emergency presentation in otolaryngology. In many places one episode of peritonsillar abscess is not considered an indication for emergency or interval tonsillectomy and future episodes...

Military acoustic trauma: incidence and management

This is a retrospective study on the effects of acute acoustic trauma on the hearing thresholds of 225 military personnel. The main symptom after acute acoustic trauma due to firearm use was tinnitus. The authors consider it as the main...

Ultrasound assessment of metastatic disease

This Japanese study of 10 patients over 15 years, assesses the role of ultrasonography in assessing metastatic disease to the thyroid gland, specifically renal clear cell carcinoma (RCCC). Whilst uncommon, the authors state that there is a favourable prognosis when...

Primary ossicular chain reconstruction in open-cavity mastoidectomy

The authors performed a retrospective analysis of 21 patients who had undergone primary reconstruction of the ossicular chain during canal-wall-down mastoidectomy. The ossiculoplasty technique used consisted of removal of the malleus head and division of tensor tympani, and rotation of...