Is a Simple Checklist Associated With Improvement in Gender Representation at the AAO-HNSF Annual Meeting?

OBJECTIVE: In September 2017, the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (AAO-HNS) added 2 questions querying panel organizers if gender/racial diversity was considered in selecting panel presenters, beginning with the 2018 Annual Meeting (AM). This study examines how this checklist impacted the gender diversity of panel presenters at the AAO-HNS AM. STUDY DESIGN: This was a cross-sectional investigation comparing female representation before and after the addition of questions inquiring about diversity in 2018. SETTING: A review of abstract submissions for the AMs from 2015 to 2021. METHODS: AM Official Program Abstracts were used to obtain presenter names and specialty area for each panel. The percentage of female presenters, in total and stratified by specialty area, were compared before and after 2018 to quantify changes following the addition of the checklist. RESULTS: There was a significant increase in the proportion of female panel presenters from 22.3% (total n = 1199) in 2015 to 2017 to 33.0% (total n = 1868) in 2018 to 2021 (P < .001) and in all panel specialties. The number of female moderated panels also significantly increased after checklist implementation from 22% to 38% (P < .001). Correspondingly, the number of panels with no female representation decreased from 42% in 2015 to 2017 to 23% in 2018 to 2021 (P < .001). CONCLUSION: The addition of a checklist asking panel organizers to consider diversity in selecting panelists was associated with an increased proportion of female presenters at the AM. This simple strategy can be implemented by all medical conferences to help close the gender gap.

Standard and Extend High-Frequency Audiometry in Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss: Impacts on Tinnitus and Mental Health.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the results of auditory assessment in standard (SA) and extended high-frequency (EHF) audiometry, associating the findings with sudden tinnitus and mental health of patients with unilateral sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL). STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, cohort study. SETTING: Outpatient otology clinic in a tertiary care hospital. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Patients experiencing unilateral SSNHL were evaluated with pure-tone audiometry performed at frequencies of 250 to16,000 Hz, tinnitus pitch and loudness matching tests, Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI), Analog and Visual Scale (AVS) for bothersome tinnitus, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). RESULTS: Eighteen patients with unilateral SSNHL were assessed. After starting treatment, there was a significant improvement in the SA (71.1 dB to 50 dB; p < 0.001*) and EHF audiometry (64.5 dB to 54.4 dB; p < 0.001*) thresholds at 15 days, and this persisted at 30 days of follow-up. Significant improvements were seen for tinnitus in loudness, VAS, and THI and for mental health in the realms of anxiety and depression by HADS. Despite improvements in SA, persistent EHF hearing loss was accompanied by persistent tinnitus, but it was of diminished loudness. CONCLUSION: Despite improvement in pure-tone thresholds by SA, a subset of unilateral SSNHL patients did not experience hearing recovery in EHF thresholds and reported persistent tinnitus. We postulate that their diminished anxiety and better mental health may be related to both hearing improvement in standard audiometry and reduction in tinnitus loudness. This pilot prospective study investigates the utility of performing EHF audiometry to better understand outcomes in patients with SSNHL.

Caring for the Patient with Otolaryngologic Trauma Is a Complex Matter.

In an Austrian study of 14,654 patients with 35,129 injuries treated at a single Department of Cranio-Maxillofacial and Oral Surgery over a 15-year period, the following was seen.1 Older people were more prone to soft tissue lesions with a rising risk of 2.1% per year older, equal in men and women. Younger patients were at higher risk of dentoalveolar trauma with an increase of 4.4% per year younger, and this was 19.6% higher for women. The risk of sustaining facial bone fractures increased each year by 4.6% and was 66.4% times higher in men. A total of 2550 patients (17.4%) suffered 3834 concomitant injuries of other body parts.

Corticosteroid Use in Otolaryngology: Current Considerations During the COVID-19 Era.

OBJECTIVE: To offer pragmatic, evidence-informed advice on administering corticosteroids in otolaryngology during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, considering therapeutic efficacy, potential adverse effects, susceptibility to COVID-19, and potential effects on efficacy of vaccination against SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19. DATA SOURCES: PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMBASE, CINAHL, and guideline databases. REVIEW METHODS: Guideline search strategies, supplemented by database searches on sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL), idiopathic facial nerve paralysis (Bell's palsy), sinonasal polyposis, laryngotracheal disorders, head and neck oncology, and pediatric otolaryngology, prioritizing systematic reviews, randomized controlled trials, and COVID-19-specific findings. CONCLUSIONS: Systemic corticosteroids (SCSs) reduce long-term morbidity in individuals with SSNHL and Bell's palsy, reduce acute laryngotracheal edema, and have benefit in perioperative management for some procedures. Topical or locally injected corticosteroids are preferable for most other otolaryngologic indications. SCSs have not shown long-term benefit for sinonasal disorders. SCSs are not a contraindication to vaccination with COVID-19 vaccines approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention noted that these vaccines are safe for immunocompromised patients. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: SCS use for SSNHL, Bell's palsy, laryngotracheal edema, and perioperative care should follow prepandemic standards. Local or topical corticosteroids are preferable for most other otolaryngologic indications. Whether SCSs attenuate response to vaccination against COVID-19 or increase susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2 infection is unknown. Immunosuppression may lower vaccine efficacy, so immunocompromised patients should adhere to recommended infection control practices. COVID-19 vaccination with Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, or Johnson & Johnson vaccines is safe for immunocompromised patients.