Ear, Nose & Throat insights from Mike Dilkes, expert in ENT laser surgery

Problems with the tonsils are well accounted for in this blog. The old fashioned extra capsular tonsillectomy cannot be justified in all but the most severe cases. From a quality of life perspective the suffering from this procedure could be considered greater than the patient's suffering from tonsil problems, although that's hard to judge over a lifetime. A lesser procedure to remove the majority of the tonsils, perhaps not totally curing symptoms but far more acceptable in

People do not like tonsil stones for two main reasons. Firstly they are comprised of debris from the mouth, including dead cells, salivary residue, and food. This means they will rot over time, with bacterial growth and the release of putrefying gases, which are unpleasant to smell. Secondly this process also set up local inflammation and soreness in the tonsils, causing acute on chronic tonsillitis, which can be a debilitating condition linked to chronic fatigue.

Laser turbinoplasty works well, but in this situation the patient had some pain so it was only half completed. As you can see the part that was treated has shrunk back well - see arrow. Today I retreated the front without any pain so the result should be good

Blocked nose due to a septal deviation can be nicely treated by septoplasty.

Nose unblocking laser turbinoplasty under local anaesthetic in clinic. This procedure has a high patient satisfaction rate.

All of these symptoms can be caused by having a long, thick or just unusual uvula - the hanging down structure in the back of the throat. Here's a picture of a very thick and forward pointing uvula that was driving the patient mad as it was constantly being felt at the back of her mouth. She couldn't stop rubbing her tongue against it. So I injected local anaesthetic above it, and vapourised it away in about 10 minutes, see second picture. Immediately the sensation had gone,

Tonsil stones - how to treat them and how to permanently cure them. Simple techniques to ameliorate or eradicate them.

Snoring treatment is multidisciplinary, CPAP can be very effective when tolerated by the patient.