Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is often considered to be a contributory factor to the development of a spectrum of laryngeal abnormalities including vocal cord leukoplakia and dysplasia. This is especially the case when traditional risk factors, such as tobacco smoking, are...
Restful sleep is crucial for health but conditions like obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) can significantly disrupt it, leading to fatigue, cardiovascular issues, and other serious health problems. Polysomnography (PSG) remains the gold standard for OSA diagnosis [1], however it is...
This month’s journal issue discussed global health in otolaryngology with this paper focusing on the management of chronic middle ear disease in the developing world. Chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM) is more common in developing countries. The reason for this...
Chronic ear disease can be challenging to manage and difficult for patients to live with. In this article, the authors describe their technique for otomastoid obliteration and blind sac closure of the external canal allowing for a more tolerable situation...
A critical question when any new technique is proposed is ‘does it work?’ In this article Daniele Marchioni and Davide Soloperto discuss the success rates of endoscopic ear surgery for cholesteatoma. Introduction Surgical management of cholesteatoma is still a controversial...
Rachel Shenton shares her recent Oscar achievement with us in this interview, along with her commitment to supporting those with hearing loss to be able to access the arts. She tells us also about her latest project… Rachel Shenton. Firstly...
The British Academic Conference in Otolaryngology (BACO) will take place at the Manchester Central Conference Centre next July. To give you an idea of what to expect at this major UK conference we interviewed Professor Tim Woolford, Consultant Ear, Nose...
Hearing loss has a well-documented adverse impact on emotional, social and physical well-being. In this article, Dr Piers Dawes from the University of Manchester gives an insight into his team’s recent work analysing the very large UK Biobank data set,...
A team of clinician scientists have identified the factors that predict full hearing recovery, with the strongest predictor being treatment with steroids within seven days of a sudden drop in hearing.
Nick Jones’s poetry debut - a short (16 poems) collection - is a revelation. He traverses time and place with ease, evoking childhood memories and ephemeral moments, suffusing the ordinary and the mundane with an almost sacred sense of epiphany...
Earwax removal is a controversial and much-debated issue in audiology. Risks and public safety call for reforms, sparking discussion on professional standards. Earwax is a natural secretion produced by the ear. It is an amalgamation of desquamous epithelial skin cells,...
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...