Parental preferences for duration of hospital stay following tonsillectomy.

Parents of children undergoing (adeno) tonsillectomy were questioned about their preferences for a period of hospitalization. The proportion wanting early discharge increased as their children recovered after surgery.

Alteration of airflow and mucociliary transport in normal subjects.

The effect that variation of nasal airflow has on the mucociliary clearance was studied in healthy volunteers. The nasal saccharin particle clearance time was found to have an inverse relationship with the nasal airflow.

Steroids and control of post-tonsillectomy pain.

A prospective, randomized, double-blind study to assess the effect of steroids on post-tonsillectomy pain was performed on 82 adults. The premedication, anaesthesia, surgical technique and post-operative analgesia were standardized. Pain was assessed on a visual analog scale. Steroids were found to have no appreciable effect on the amount of post-operative pain.

The effect of submucous resection of the nasal septum on mucociliary transport and nasal airway.

This paper reports changes in ciliary function following submucous resection of the nasal septum in 36 adult patients assessed by measuring mucociliary clearance time with a saccharine particle using the method described by Andersen et al. The alterations in mucociliary clearance time were compared with active anterior rhinomanometry. Following surgery, changes in symptoms of nasal obstruction as recorded by questionnaire were largely consistent with changes in mucociliary function and to a lesser extent with rhinomanometry. It is suggested that patients with a mucociliary clearance time of less than 10 min in the more blocked nostril may be less likely to benefit from surgery.

Weight gain in children following tonsillectomy.

There is much controversial evidence that children gain weight to a significant extent following tonsillectomy, usually associated with a general improvement in health. One hundred and nine consecutive children undergoing tonsillectomy in Dundee for recurrent tonsillitis had their weight recorded pre-operatively, and twelve months after surgery were re-weighed and a symptom chart completed. The results showed the patients were generally not underweight before surgery as their median weight was on the 55th. percentile. Most parents reported an improvement in their child's appetite with a reduction in the number of sore throats after surgery. Their weights following surgery had increased by an average of 20 per cent over what would normally have been expected, but this increase in weight was not confined to underweight children, but to the entire group.

Intraoral corroboration of systemic plasma-cell myeloma. Abbreviated case report.

A patient with a previously diagnosed case of multiple myeloma was readmitted for a pathologic fracture of the hip. Intraoral examination revealed a soft-tissue swelling over the right posterior mandibular ridge. Radiographs showed multiple radiolucent areas of the maxilla and mandible. A needle-biopsy technique was used to confirm the diagnosis of intraoral manifestations of plasma-cell myeloma.

Comprehensive management of the double tooth: report of case.

A patient with an abnormal maxillary lateral incisor was treated to restore function and to improve appearance. Although specific classification of the problem into accepted terminology was attempted, the term double tooth was used to define the patient's problem. We have shown that the identification of the specific abnormalities, not the etiologic classification, is important to achieve an effective treatment plan.