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Otolith dysfunction in congenitally deaf adults

This paper helps to further define the profile of ocular and cervical vestibular-evoked myogenic potentials (o and c VEMPs) in patients with congenital profound sensorineural hearing loss (PSHL). It highlights the prevalence of otolith (saccular and utricular) dysfunction that exists...

When should we decompress the facial nerve in Bell’s Palsy?

It has been over three decades since Fisch popularised facial nerve (FN) decompression for Bell’s Palsy. Studies further exploring this have been few since, partly due to the major complications that can occur following this type of surgery. The current...

Management of necrotising otitis externa

Although uncommon, necrotising (previously malignant) otitis externa (nOE) can be very aggressive, particularly if not managed appropriately. In this study the authors perform a retrospective review of 25 patients admitted with nOE over a four year period at a tertiary...

Application of paper patching in patulous eustachian tube

The condition of patulous eustachian tube, as opposed to dysfunctional eustachian tube, is less frequently diagnosed. Symptoms related to this, such as autophony, aural fullness, ‘being under water’, ‘hearing their own breathing’, and hearing sensitivity (varying in either direction) can...

Treating middle ear conditions in developing countries

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...

‘Dead ear’ after mastoid surgery

The primary aim of surgery in the management of cholesteatoma is eradication of the disease which can potentially result in serious complications such as intracranial extension, facial nerve weakness and further hearing loss. A profound hearing loss resulting postoperatively considerably...

How has management and outcomes of necrotising otitis externa changed over the past decade?

Necrotising otitis externa (NOE) remains a challenging condition for ENT departments, particularly with the increased prevalence of diabetes mellitus (DM) in the general population. There is no international consensus on treatment, although many institutions now have local guidelines drawn up...

Role of intratympanic corticosteroid for treatment of Bell’s palsy and Ramsay Hunt syndrome

Acute peripheral facial palsy occurs annually in 30 in 1,000,000 individuals in the general population. Bell’s palsy and Ramsay Hunt syndrome account for about 70% of cases of peripheral facial palsy. They are believed to be caused by viral reactivation...

Advances in auditory implants

This article provides an overview of auditory implants. Implanted auditory devices may be classified into bone conduction implants (BCI) and active middle ear implants (AMEI) that stimulate cochlear hair cells, and cochlear implants (CI) that stimulate neural structures. CIs bypass...

Can tympanometry be used to diagnose Ménière’s disease?

The authors proposed multifrequency tympanometry (MFT) as an in-office test which may be able to diagnose Ménière’s disease (MD) that is quicker and more cost-effective than other methods. MFT measures the acoustic admittance of the middle ear and external ear...

Is Gamma Knife Surgery effective for intracanalicular vestibular schwannomas?

Vestibular schwannomas (VSs) are rare, occurring in approximately five per 100,000 adults a year. In circa 8% of cases, the VS is contained within the internal auditory canal, i.e. intracanalicular (iVS). Although radiosurgery is a recognised treatment modality for VSs,...