General practitioners are the first members of the medical community to deal with ear problems. In this survey, 11 GPs examined 124 patients using a regular otoscope and a video-otoscope and reported their findings in a 10-item table. The same...
Several factors are responsible for readmission after acoustic tumour removal. The authors retrospectively studied the association between hospital, patient and insurance factors with the rate of readmission following acoustic tumour removal in the United States using the Nationwide Readmission Database...
It is well-known that hearing loss can lead to social isolation and consequent loneliness. This study aimed to research whether hearing loss treatment helps in overcoming loneliness long-term. Two types of treatment - hearing aids (HA) and cochlear implants (CI)...
This is a very interesting study concerning the validity and readability of 10 hearing disability English language questionnaires available for clinical use. The questionnaires were assessed against the World Health Organisation’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health framework (WHO-ICF)....
Whether the person with the swallowing difficulty has an acquired or progressive neurological condition, understanding the aetiology will allow the speech and language therapist assessing the swallow to have a better understanding of the likely implications for future swallow management...
Advances in genetic testing over the last decade have reduced the cost and time such testing required and increased understanding of the genes involved in conditions like congenital hearing loss. This study from Atlanta looks at genetic testing from a...
Therapeutic alliance describes what happens in the interactions and relationships between the client and the therapist. There is evidence from mental health literature that a therapeutic alliance can have a significant impact on outcomes. A negative alliance can lead to...
This Belgian retrospective observational study looked at the success rate and predictive factors for success when bilateral advancement flaps were used via an external approach. In total, 111 patients were included in the study over a 16-year period. The mean...
This Belgian study looked at the risks and complications of bedside percutaneous tracheostomy in patients who received anticoagulant therapy. The 231 tracheostomies included in the study were performed over an eight-year period by two otolaryngologists using bronchoscopic guidance. The mean...
In absence of any clear bleeding points seen on the septum, it is generally presumed that the epistaxis is posterior, especially when simple cauterisation of the septum does not help and may progress to sphenopalatine ligation. In this publication, the...
This is a literature review of 16 papers using the PRISMA protocol. In comparing the two techniques, not surprisingly, they found that extracapsular dissection was associated with a reduced incidence of facial nerve paralysis and Frey’s syndrome and a shorter...
Traumatic brain injuries are most common amongst young people and can have long term consequences. The authors of this article provide an approach to management of cognitive and communication difficulties which starts with a detailed assessment using the model of...