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Ossicular reconstruction

Ossicular reconstruction often yields disappointing results, even for the most experienced and skilled of otologists. John Dornhoffer and David Walker explain that the most important determinant of outcome is the patient’s middle ear environment, and offer some valuable words of...

Head and neck cancer multidisciplinary team

Why do we have MDTs? Do they make a difference to outcomes? Jon Bernstein explores the whys and wherefores of the head and neck cancer MDT, and wonders where things might go from here… Head and neck (upper aerodigestive tract)...

Treating voice disorders in singers

There are few ENT surgeons who have as much insight into singers’ problems as Nick Gibbins. A good knowledge of working patterns, repertoire and the physiology of ‘vocal athletes’ is essential. He shares a few thoughts with us. When deciding...

Mastoid surgery for cholesteatoma

Landmark Paper: Toner JG, Smyth GDL. Surgical Treatment of Cholesteatoma: a comparison of three techniques. Am J Otol 1990;11(4):247-9. Canal wall up or canal wall down? Chris Aldren discusses the landmark paper that attempted to provide a definitive answer for...

Patient experience of necrotising otitis externa

Necrotising otitis externa is increasing in incidence in the UK and becoming a rising burden to patients and health services. Despite a growing body of literature on this condition, we know very little about patient experience of necrotising otitis externa....

How the earwig got its name

What are earwigs, and how are they connected with the ear? Amr Abdelhamid explains the etymology, myths and beliefs behind the pesky creature with the otological name. Earwigs are harmless insects of the order Dermaptera that are amongst the most...

Andreas Wagner: ESPO 2025 keynote speaker

The keynote speaker for ESPO 2025 in Stuttgart is renowned evolutionary biologist and author Professor Andreas Wagner, from Zurich. Prof Wagner will focus on the congress theme of ‘Innovation’, giving us his unique perspective on how evolution drives human creativity....

Benchmarking for innovation in healthcare ­– an approach from 
Down Under and a gap in the 
National Health Service?

Benchmarking is a process of comparison between the performance characteristics of separate, often competing, organisations intended to enable each participant to improve its own performance [1]. Often, in healthcare, benchmarking is carried out by central government departments or regional agencies...

Clinical WG1. Establishing a standard for tinnitus: patient assessment and characterisation

Rilana Cima and Haúla Haider introduce an ambitious pan-European collaboration that seeks to establish guidelines for achieving best clinical practice for managing, assessing and treating patients with different tinnitus profiles. Tinnitus heterogeneity is the major reason for inconsistent results in...

Multidisciplinary approach to managing individuals with trisomy 21

Michelle Chung and Narad Mathura outline the Down syndrome one-stop clinic; a multidisciplinary clinic introduced at the Children & Young Persons Audiology Centre (CYPAC) at Guys and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust for children and young people with Down syndrome....

Addressing the hearing needs of people with dementia

Dr Dawes provides a comprehensive overview of hearing needs of persons with dementia coupled with recommended guidelines for hearing-related considerations when assessing and intervening with persons with dementia. With ageing populations, we face a global dementia challenge. Rates of both...