The end of an unforgettable year

Abstract

This year has been dominated by the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic. Without doubt it has resulted in significant disruption to our lives, existing practices and our specialty. Alongside this, there has been a surge in journal submissions for coronavirus-themed articles. It is through medical journals such as ours that published, peer-reviewed evidence can be rapidly shared on a global scale, which is so important in a pandemic such as this. Throughout this year, coronavirus-related articles have been fast-tracked within our peer review process, and we thank everyone involved at The Journal of Laryngology & Otology for making this possible. Otolaryngology as a specialty has been particularly hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic given the close-up nature of our specialty to virion-loaded mucosal surfaces in the upper airways. Virtual (remote) clinics and videoconferencing have taken an increasing precedence since the pandemic was declared, and this theme is continued within this issue. 1-4 In addition, special precautions, use of personal protective equipment and novel techniques have been developed for aerosol-generating procedures in otolaryngology. Lawrence et al., in this month's issue, continue this theme by illustrating a novel drape 'tent' method for use in mastoid surgery. 5 We have published a substantial number of articles this year linking Covid-19 infection with smell and taste disturbances. 6-10 We end the year with a tour-de-force article in this month's issue investigating the olfactory epithelium at the microscopic level in Covid-19 anosmia cases, in an attempt to elucidate the pathogenesis of olfactory dysfunction in Covid-19 infection. 11 Histological findings demonstrate significant disruption and desquamation of the surface olfactory epithelium. The authors hypothesise that failure of epithelial repair leads to thinning and loss of the olfactory dendrites.