Thyroglossal duct carcinoma is uncommon, occurring in approximately 1% of all thyroglossal duct cysts. It is often diagnosed incidentally after surgical excision. Ninety-four percent of carcinomas are of thyroid origin, with most being papillary in nature, and 6% are of squamous cell origin. Incidentally discovered, well-differentiated thyroid carcinoma of the thyroglossal duct, in the presence of a clinically and radiologically normal thyroid gland, can be managed adequately by the Sistrunk operation. Those patients with more advanced disease require more aggressive treatment. This may include a total thyroidectomy with or without neck dissection in addition to the Sistrunk operation, followed by radioactive iodine therapy and thyroid-stimulating hormone suppression. The prognosis is generally excellent with adequately treated disease.

Conservation laryngeal surgery is a safe and effective treatment for recurrent localized disease after radiotherapy for early stage glottic cancer. Local control may be achieved without the sacrifice of laryngeal function, and total laryngectomy may be held in reserve as the ultimate option for salvage without compromising ultimate survival significantly.

Self citation of a journal may affect its impact factor. Self citations during 1997 and 1998 were investigated in six 'general' otolaryngology journals. The citations each journal gave to other journals, including itself, and the citations each journal received from the other journals, differed significantly among the six journals (chi2= 2794, d.f. = 25, P < 0.0001). Acta Otolaryngologica and Laryngoscope had the highest self-citing rates (11.9% and 10.02%). Clinical Otolaryngology had the lowest self-citing rate (4%). There was no significant correlation between self-citing rates and impact factors for the six otolaryngology journals (r = -0.3143, P = 0.56).