The latest Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG 9501/Phase III) seems to be a step closer to sorting out just when and who chemo really helps in the treatment of squamous cell cancer of the head and neck. There are several tumor characteristics that we consider “high risk” for recurrence in head and neck cancer. To […]
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via Medical News: Brain-Eating Amoeba Kills Second Neti Pot User – in Infectious Disease, Infection Control from MedPage Today. Wow! Louisiana State officials are announcing they have linked a second death from amoebic meningitis to the use of the Neti Pot. This is a terrible 100% fatal form of meningitis that happens when a particular amoeba, […]
Q&A: My three year-old son gets ear infections every fall and spring. Does he need to get ear tubes? -T. in Georgia Thanks, T. Constantly battling with ear infections can take a toll on you as well as your child. We place tubes usually for two separate reasons: #1 fluid behind the eardrum that does […]
Why fingernails-on-a-chalkboard is the worst sound in the world By Melissa Dahl Screeeeeeeech. Even imagining the sound of a person’s fingernails scraping down a chalkboard is tortuous. Now, new research helps suggest why the noise is such a special kind of awful. The frequency of the screechy, scratchy sound ranges between 2000 Hz and 4000 — […]
A change in smelling ability (the sense of “olfaction”) is known as anosmia or parosmia. It is of course very common with the cold, flu, or sinusitis, but can be a real burden if the loss of smell sticks around afterwards. The most common reason for anosmia is swelling in the top of the nasal […]
IntersectEnt.com This week I used the novel steroid-eluting Propel stent in the operating room for the first time. It is a new FDA approved device to improve healing after endoscopic sinus surgery. The device deployed well, and seemed to fit snugly. It is designed to absorb over a thirty-day period. I really like the device […]
From EndocrineWeb: How prevalent is thyroid cancer in the U.S.?. Certainly a diagnosis that is increasing. Increasing so much in fact that we may be changing what our our definition of thyroid cancer is in the next 20 years. Currently we call a lot of lesions “cancer” that are only noticed under the microscope in patients who […]
There are many specific issues to consider when sinus surgery is recommended by your otolaryngologist. Most patients I see for a “second opinion” about their sinuses do in fact have sinuses that justify surgery. However somewhere along the way the goals and expectations of surgery have been forgotten. Here are the questions you should be […]
We joke that if your doctor suggests you get rid of your cat to control allergies, then you’re more likely to get rid of your doctor. This is probably very true, however many of the things we can do to control our environment are fairly painless and may be things you haven’t thought of before. Pet […]
Adult-onset hearing loss affects millions of Americans and accounts for a huge economic burden in our country. There are two major forms of hearing loss – “sensory / neural” and “conductive”. Sensorineural hearing loss is caused by injury to the acoustic nerve or the cochlea. These injuries can be from noise damage, viruses, meningitis, and […]