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Why screen for hearing loss in adults?

Introduction Hearing loss affects over 10 million people in the UK – one in six of the population. Of over 50-year-olds 41.7% are estimated to have some form of hearing loss. This rises to 71.1% of over 70-year-olds, over half...

Developments in diagnostic approaches for acutely dizzy patients

The acutely dizzy patient can be a diagnostic and management dilemma for emergency departments and general practitioners, with many patients consequently having delayed access to specialised assessment and treatment. David Jay tells us about HINTS, a bedside test that can...

Decreased sound tolerance in autism: understanding and distinguishing between hyperacusis, misophonia, and phonophobia

Decreased sound tolerance (DST) affects a significant proportion of autistic people throughout their lifetime and, as Zachary J Williams explains, it is important that clinicians are aware of the three distinct subtypes of DST when making a diagnosis. Autism spectrum...

Vocal cord paralysis: an update

The management of unilateral vocal cord paralysis has changed in the last few years: this has largely come about as a result of improvements in technology, meaning that medialisations are quicker and easier to perform than previously. This article will...

Thyroid ultrasound elastography: does nodule stiffness predict malignancy?

Approximately 50% of the general population has a thyroid nodule while 5-15% of these are malignant [1]. A major challenge, therefore, is how to detect the malignant nodules for appropriate, timely treatment and avoid unnecessary, costly investigations for the remainder....

The MACRO Trial: defining best management of chronic rhinosinusitis

A major UK trial in The Lancet finds ESS provides greater symptom relief than long-term macrolides for adults with CRS, supporting earlier surgery and fewer antibiotics. The MACRO Programme was established in 2016 when the UK National Institute of Health...

Assessing extended high-frequency hearing

The frequency range of human hearing spans 20 Hz to 20 kHz. In the UK, standard audiometry usually assesses 0.25–8 kHz; the extended high frequencies (EHFs) are those above 8 kHz. The importance of assessing EHF hearing has been increasingly...

Secrets of the listening brain: what measuring the brain can tell us about hearing aid use and more

In a typical audiology clinic, on any given day, a person is waiting to see an audiologist to get a hearing aid (HA). It might have taken over 10 years to get to this point of considering a hearing aid(s)...

In conversation with Sam Lear, BAA President: leading audiology forward

Dr Samantha Lear is the current British Academy of Audiology President, and Senior Audiology Policy Advisor at the National Deaf Children’s Society. With reviews ongoing in paediatric audiology in England and Scotland, Sam is ideally placed to lead the profession....

Advances in laryngeal surgery

We are seeing many advances in laryngology: from the lab, from equipment manufacturers and from developments in surgical techniques. The field of laryngology has been under constant change in recent years, with the introduction of new technologies and research. The...

Laryngotracheal stenosis and malacia care

Why laryngotracheal stenosis and malacia (LTSM) care matters now? In late 2019, reports began to emerge of severe respiratory infections caused by a novel coronavirus. In the months that followed, intensive care admissions in the UK rose more than tenfold....