When would you like to be treated?--A short survey of radiotherapy outpatients.

Aims: To determine whether patients undergoing radiotherapy would choose to attend appointments for a course of treatment scheduled outside the normal working day and working week.

Materials And Methods: A survey of radiotherapy outpatients was conducted on two single days in late 2005 and early 2006. There were four departments in the first cohort and five in the second cohort.

Extended hours working in radiotherapy in the UK.

Aims: To analyse extended hours working patterns within UK cancer centres and to assess alternatives to the normal 9.00 am to 5.00 pm working day.

A double blind comparison of intranasal budesonide 400 micrograms and 800 micrograms in perennial rhinitis.

A randomized double blind placebo controlled cross-over study comparing budesonide 400 micrograms and budesonide 800 micrograms daily in 59 patients is presented. Nasal obstruction was the predominant symptom and was subjectively and objectively improved by both doses of budesonide (P less than 0.001).

Trimming of the inferior turbinates: a prospective long-term study.

The aim of this study was to determine whether the initial benefits of radical trimming and anterior trimming of the inferior turbinates on nasal airflow persisted in the long term. Radical trimming significantly reduced nasal resistance at 2 months following operation (n = 12) (P less than 0.005).

Predicting the outcome of submucosal diathermy to the inferior turbinates.

For many years it has been suggested that the subjective outcome of the operation of submucosal diathermy to the inferior turbinates (SMD) may be predicted by pre-operatively testing the ability of the nasal mucosa to decongest with topical vasoconstrictor agents. This study of 22 patients undergoing SMD, confirms that the pre-operative decongestion produced by xylometazoline is both a good subjective (P less than 0.001) and objective (P less than 0.

The nasal valve: a physiological and clinical study.

Fifteen subjects underwent nasal pressure gradient studies to determine the resistance profile of the nose. Seventy-nine per cent of nasal resistance to airflow occurred in the segment 0 cm.-2.

The effect of local anaesthesia of the nasal vestibule on nasal sensation of airflow and nasal resistance.

The effect of local anaesthesia of the nasal vestibule on nasal sensation of airflow and nasal resistance was assessed in 15 subjects. A single blind parallel group trial was undertaken in 30 subjects, with lignocaine as the active drug, and normal saline as the placebo. Fifteen subjects were included in each group.

A microcomputer-based procedure for carrying out rhinomanometry.

The determination of nasal airway resistance by the technique of anterior rhinomanometry is made difficult by several factors. Among these are the variability in the breath by breath measurement of airflow and pressure, the effect of under or over breathing, and the ability to produce a smooth transition between inspiration and expiration during which period the measurements are made. To overcome some of these problems a standard procedure has been developed (in our laboratory) for active anterior rhinomanometry.

Nasal resistance to airflow (its measurement, reproducibility and normal parameters).

A method of rhinomanometry is described for use in clinical research work. The statistical distribution of nasal resistance values is studied in a sample of 59 normal individuals. The variation of nasal resistance within two individuals is studied over a period of 7 hours.

Rhinomanometry: do the anterior and posterior methods give equivalent results?

Nasal resistance to airflow was measured by both anterior and posterior rhinomanometry in 15 healthy volunteers. It was found that the posterior method gave values on average 16% higher than the anterior method. This difference was statistically significant.