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Building sound: from Stonehenge to a Symphony Hall

Modern architecture can use scientific techniques to shape room acoustics and create great sounding places. Professor Trevor Cox discusses our ancestors’ understanding of the importance of building techniques to enhance acoustics from Stonehenge to a Symphony Hall. Going to an...

Teenagers with misophonia

Misophonia can be a distressing condition for teenagers and can have devastating effects upon their home and school lives. There is little research in this area and, as Lucy Partridge explains, more is greatly needed in order to identify interventions...

Beyond ‘sticky floors’ and glass ceilings’: eight women department and society leaders share their stories

In the United States and Canada, there have been a total of 12 women otolaryngologists who have achieved high positions of leadership. Eight of these women were interviewed for this piece. Each woman’s responses were thoughtful and truthful. Common themes...

Lawrence Werth (19 October 1956 – 19 August 2014)

In August the audiology community was saddened to learn that Lawrence Werth (57), Chairman of PC Werth Ltd, London had passed away after a brave battle with skin cancer. A prolific contributor to this magazine over the years, he is...

The artificial eardrum: how an eggshell membrane fed a German ENT family

In the pre-antibiotic era, purulent otitis media often resulted in a permanent eardrum perforation with hearing loss. In addition to pig or fish bladders, eggshell membranes and cigarette paper were used as eardrum prostheses. I have vivid personal boyhood memories...

Muscle tension dysphagia: an underdiagnosed problem

In this article, the authors introduce the description of swallowing problems which have been recently attributed to muscle tension dysphagia (MTDg). The authors are clear that this is a diagnosis of exclusion, and it is important to rule out other...

Cognitive spare capacity: what is it and why does it matter?

Cognition refers to thinking and memory. So why would cognition be a useful concept for ENTs and audiologists? Audition provides our main channel of communication and when we speak to each other, we want to exchange thoughts and remember what...

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) and the vestibular system: a case study

This team of audiologists from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Centre discuss an eight year old with congenital CMV, a neonatal infection which is usually asymptomatic, and provide guidance on how to recognise the signs in the paediatric population, and screen...

Alternobaric vertigo: asymmetrical vestibular function due to asymmetrical middle ear pressures (Iron Man’s archenemy)

The Marvel Cinematic Universe could certainly be deemed an ‘extreme environment’ and yet very rarely do we see the Avenger’s popping to the clinic for a check-up. Hee-Young Kim has wondered how they cope with extreme pressure changes and discusses...

Endoscopic ear surgery in children

The benefits of endoscopes in otologic surgery, which have become increasingly widely appreciated in recent years, are very well suited to the management of paediatric middle ear disease. Although one might imagine that the smaller ear canal of a child...