ENTtoday
  • Home
  • COVID-19
  • Practice Focus
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Departments
    • Issue Archive
    • TRIO Best Practices
      • Allergy
      • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
      • Head and Neck
      • Laryngology
      • Otology/Neurotology
      • Pediatric
      • Rhinology
      • Sleep Medicine
    • Career Development
    • Case of the Month
    • Everyday Ethics
    • Health Policy
    • Legal Matters
    • Letter From the Editor
    • Medical Education
    • Online Exclusives
    • Practice Management
    • Resident Focus
    • Rx: Wellness
    • Special Reports
    • Tech Talk
    • Viewpoint
    • What’s Your O.R. Playlist?
  • Literature Reviews
    • Allergy
    • Facial Plastic/Reconstructive
    • Head and Neck
    • Laryngology
    • Otology/Neurotology
    • Pediatric
    • Rhinology
    • Sleep Medicine
  • Events
    • Featured Events
    • TRIO Meetings
  • Contact Us
    • About Us
    • Editorial Board
    • Triological Society
    • Advertising Staff
    • Subscribe
  • Advertise
    • Place an Ad
    • Classifieds
    • Rate Card
  • Search

Tackling Controversial Issues in Otolaryngology

by Thomas R. Collins • March 4, 2018

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version

Experts gave guidance on how to tackle four areas important to otolaryngologists and head and neck surgeons during a “controversies” session held during the Triological Society Combined Sections Meeting.

You Might Also Like

No related posts.

Explore This Issue
March 2018

Congenital Aural Atresia

Bradley Kesser, MD, professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, discussed a controversial clinical question: whether bone conduction hearing devices (BCHDs) should be used in all children with unilateral congenital aural atresia (CAA). While these devices are crucial to support speech and language development in children with bilateral CAA, he said that the literature suggests they might not be necessary for all children with unilateral CAA.

A study in which Dr. Kesser was involved found that none of the 40 children with unilateral CAA repeated a grade in school, but families did seek out resources to help their children, including amplification, speech therapy, and independent education plans arranged with their school districts (Laryngoscope. 2013;123:2270-2275).

Dr. Kesser said his approach is never to discourage families from trying a BCHD, but they certainly shouldn’t be made to feel guilty for not having their children use one. “I tell parents: ‘We have enough battles to fight with our children—making your 5-year-old wear a bone conductor for eight hours a day doesn’t necessarily need to be one of [them],’” he said. But, he emphasized, it’s crucial to monitor academic progress, speech and language development, and hearing, and to put in place resources to support a child’s academic success.

Middle Turbinate and Headache

Ashutosh Kacker, MD, professor of clinical otolaryngology at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, said that one of the most difficult issues involving the middle turbinate is whether or not surgical treatment can improve headache. “Not everyone believes in it, (and) there’s a lack of good quality studies,” he said.

There is some suggestion in the literature that surgical treatment of the concha bullosa yields better results than medical care (Eur Rev Med Pharmacol Sci. 2015;19:2327-2330).

In a study with the highest-quality evidence Dr. Kacker could find, researchers reported that surgical resection of contact points, including resection of the middle turbinate concha bullosa, had the best results for patients with Type 3 migraine (Plast Reconstr Surg. 2017;13:184-189). Unfortunately, he said, no predictors have been identified to help predict surgical success with regard to Type 3 migraine.

Howard FrancisAs a specialty, we must be proactive in preserving our relevance in a health system that would increasingly value our contributions to the health of an increasingly diverse population. The selection process should reflect the kind of resident we’re trying to attract. —Howard Francis, MD, MBA

Neck Dissection vs. Parotidectomy for Positive Sentinel Lymph Node

Carol Bradford, MD, executive vice dean for academic affairs at the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor, said that conversations with melanoma patients about neck dissection used to be simple: Neck dissection, parotidectomy, or both should be performed when a patient has a positive sentinel node; if not, the patient should be watched closely.

Pages: 1 2 3 | Single Page

Filed Under: Features Tagged With: Congenital Aural Atresia, medical residents, middle turbinate headache, selecting medical residents, Triological Society Combined Sections MeetingIssue: March 2018

You Might Also Like:

The Triological SocietyENTtoday is a publication of The Triological Society.

The Laryngoscope
Ensure you have all the latest research at your fingertips; Subscribe to The Laryngoscope today!

Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology
Open access journal in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery is currently accepting submissions.

Classifieds

View the classified ads »

TRIO Best Practices

View the TRIO Best Practices »

Top Articles for Residents

  • Do Training Programs Give Otolaryngology Residents the Necessary Tools to Do Productive Research?
  • Why More MDs, Medical Residents Are Choosing to Pursue Additional Academic Degrees
  • What Physicians Need to Know about Investing Before Hiring a Financial Advisor
  • Tips to Help You Regain Your Sense of Self
  • Should USMLE Step 1 Change from Numeric Score to Pass/Fail?
  • Popular this Week
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • Neurogenic Cough Is Often a Diagnosis of Exclusion
    • Complications for When Physicians Change a Maiden Name
    • How To: Inferior Meatus Augmentation Procedure for Empty Nose Syndrome
    • Vertigo in the Elderly: What Does It Mean?
    • New Developments in the Management of Eustachian Tube Dysfunction
    • Some Laryngopharyngeal Reflux Resists PPI Treatment
    • The Dramatic Rise in Tongue Tie and Lip Tie Treatment
    • Eustachian Tuboplasty: A Potential New Option for Chronic Tube Dysfunction and Patulous Disease
    • What Happens to Medical Students Who Don’t Match?
    • How To: Transseptal Approach to the Maxillary Sinus and Pterygopalatine Fossa
    • Patient Decision Aid Useful for Parents Offered Tonsillectomy for Their Children with Obstructive Sleep Apnea
    • Do Nimodipine and Steroids Influence Recovery Time in Post-Thyroidectomy Recurrent Laryngeal Nerve Paralysis?
    • Functional Results Strongly Influence Postoperative Satisfaction in Patients Who Have Undergone Rhinoplasty

Polls

Do you think training primary care doctors through otolaryngology fellowships will help curb the influx of unnecessary visits to specialists?

View Results

Loading ... Loading ...
  • Polls Archive
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Visit: The Triological Society • The Laryngoscope • Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology

Wiley
© 2022 The Triological Society. All Rights Reserved.
ISSN 1559-4939