Septoplasty and submucous resection are common procedures in the UK. This study looks prospectively at 40 patients undergoing surgery at two hospitals. A pre- and postoperative assessment (3 months) was made using the Sino-nasal Outcome Test. This test was originally designed for rhinosinusitis but our study suggests that it is a useful tool in nasal septal surgery, in that it combines both nasal specific and general health questions, which can be analysed individually or together. Improvements in nasal obstruction (75%), facial pain (33%) and catarrh (10%) were noted.

We describe the technique of ultrasound-guided 18 gauge (1.2 mm) needle biopsy in 16 patients with parotid gland lesions. This provides material suitable for histological analysis and can be performed quickly and safely under local anaesthesia. Thirteen of the patients had non-diagnostic blind fine-needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) with a 21 gauge (0.8 mm) needle prior to biopsy. Initial ultrasound was found to be superior to clinical examination in 31 per cent of cases. The ultrasound-guided technique provided a diagnostic specimen in 100 per cent of patients and was helpful where FNAC had been inconclusive. There was a diagnostic accuracy of 100 per cent in the patients who underwent subsequent surgery. This method should be considered when FNAC is non-diagnostic and surgical treatment is being considered. It is particularly useful in patients with diffuse enlargement of the gland and does provide a core of material for accurate assessment of tissue architecture. In this series, nine patients avoided unnecessary surgery.

In Experiment 1 rats (n = 8) received a 119-db. tone burst at 9,000 cps, alone or preceded by an 85-db. white-noise burst with a 40-, 160-, or 1,000-msec. separation. In Experiment 2 (n = 7) the tone was given alone or preceded by a light flash at a 20-, 40-, 80-, 160-, 320-, or 640-msec. separation. In both experiments the startle response to the tone was partially inhibited by the prestimulus, the magnitude of inhibition decreasing with increased stimulus separation. The similarity of the two functions suggests that the inhibitory process responsible for startle diminution is activated by multiple sensory systems and is not a specific auditory refractory process.

Amyloidoses are a group of disorders in which deposition of abnormal amounts of protein complexes (amyloid) occurs in a variety of tissues. The upper aerodigestive tract may be affected, particularly the larynx, but hypopharyngeal involvement is rarely reported. We present a unique case of amyloidosis of the post-cricoid region causing dysphagia. This case report highlights the need for otolaryngologists to consider the possibility of submucosal amyloid deposition, in the absence of mucosal lesions, in patients who present with dysphagia secondary to an obstructive lesion of the post cricoid region.

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