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Help or hinder: how and why do SLTs make clinical decisions around swallowing?

Dysphagia is a relatively common consequence of stroke, with estimates between 50% and 60% of people presenting with swallowing dysfunction following stroke. It is associated with pneumonia, malnutrition and dehydration which in turn lead to increased length of hospital admission,...

Paediatric coblation intracapsular tonsillectomy

The ENT-UK tonsillectomy audit in 2005 created understandable caution in the promotion of Coblation techniques. This prospective study on 100 consecutive paediatric patients looked at outcomes following ‘cold’ radiofrequency ablation (Coblation) intracapsular tonsillectomy. This series shows the technique to be...

Superstructure-preserving stapes surgery in otosclerosis

Stapedectomy is a well-established procedure for otosclerosis but it has a small risk of a non-hearing ear, which can be devastating for patients. The development of a procedure which is safer and with a less steep learning curve for junior...

Risks of tracheostomy in head and neck cancer

Tracheostomy is associated with several complications, with rates quoted as high as 8-45%, including: bleeding; displacement; obstruction; surgical emphysema; pneumothorax; fistulae and failure to decannulate. There are now many studies that confirm the increased length of stay and complications of...

Olfactory disorders in COVID-19

This Turkish prospective longitudinal observational study evaluated olfactory disorders (OD) and recovery processes in patients with COVID-19 infection at three time points within the first month of diagnosis: time of diagnosis with positive PCR test; time of first negative PCR...

Prognostic value of vascular ultrasonographic findings in patients with idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss

Sudden sensorineural hearing loss is often idiopathic. Although the aetiology of idiopathic sudden sensorineural hearing loss (ISSNHL) is unclear, vascular compromise is one of the frequently proposed hypotheses to explain its pathophysiology. Existing studies have shown an association between ISSNHL...

Gastrostomy tube dependence following TORS

Transoral robotic surgery (TORS) for oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (OPSCC) is now a well-established treatment modality for early (T1-T2) disease. Accumulating evidence suggests that one of its main benefits relative to conventional chemoradiotherapy is superior long-term functional outcome, especially with...

Are quinsies worth draining?

Recent data is providing accumulating evidence that treatment failure in the management of peritonsillar abscesses (PTAs, aka ‘quinsies’) is similar when these are managed with medical treatment (MT) alone versus MT plus surgical drainage (M+ST). However, in the absence of...

COVID-19 and dysphagia in critically ill patients: a reflection of some findings

Dysphagia was a common occurrence in patients admitted to intensive care units (ITU) during the pandemic. This paper explores data from 26 ITUs over 12 months during 2020-2021. Findings from 235 patients admitted with Delta and subsequent Covid variants who...

How quality improvement helped to create local guidelines for good tracheostomy care

Significant morbidity and mortality is associated with tracheostomy insertion. A complex, multistep process exists to help patients towards decannulation. This process is often complicated by patient comorbidities, discontinuity of care and communication as patients move through hospital, and variable experience...