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Not just the scissors: the story of Myron Metzenbaum

Myron Metzenbaum was born in Cleveland, Ohio (USA) in 1876, the fourth of nine children. As a young man, he worked in the family’s linen store, where his father was well known to be very kind to the less fortunate...

Erwin Geising and the fall of the Third Reich

It’s mid 1944. The allies have landed at Normandy, the Germans have abandoned Rome and are retreating from the Russians on the eastern front. The Fuhrer was in way over his head and out of his depth. Watching this series...

The pioneers of endoscopy and the sword swallowers

Adolf Kussmaul drew inspiration from an unlikely source to further the development of endoscopy… The early pioneers of airway endoscopy and oesophagoscopy were bedevilled by two major and seemingly insurmountable problems. One was the paucity of light sources, with reliance...

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...

Time to professionalise medical leadership

For a profession proud of its adherence to an evidence base, medicine has been remarkably slow to acknowledge and to act on the evidence which underpins the value of good leadership to patients and the healthcare system. Mr Robert Francis...

Screening for hearing loss in primary care

Hearing impairment is one physical disability that is increasing in prevalence in society in general, and in older adults in particular. Approximately 34 to 36 million Americans report suffering from some degree of hearing impairment with the number rising to...

Leadership and maximising resources: the view from Brazil and Venezuela

Norma de Oliveira Penido, Priscila Bogar from Brazil and Sajidxa Mariño from Venezuela, leaders in otolaryngology, discuss their career journeys, the advantages and disadvantages they exerienced along the way, and the current state of ENT practice for women in South...

The development of endoscopic sinus surgery – a meeting of three great minds

The story of the development of endoscopic sinus surgery is inextricably linked with the names of Stammberger, Messerklinger and Storz. Karl Storz’s daughter, Sybill Storz, tells us more. We would like to take this opportunity to express our appreciation of...

The future of rhinology: What will come first, a radical change in rhinological management or the decimation of the world?

In this article, Simon Gane looks forward to what the future holds, on the presumption he survives. Setting aside the questions of the UK even existing, the NHS still working, or the fact we’ll be commuting to our jobs in...

Developing a telemedical approach to tinnitus treatment for a worldwide market

Most of us have probably met at least one person in our lives who suffers from the notorious ringing in the ear, tinnitus. For many this ringing becomes a nightmare and debilitates them. Tinnitus is defined as the perception of...