European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck diseases 131 (2014) 3

Available online at

ScienceDirect www.sciencedirect.com

Editorial

The benefits of chocolate

In medicine, cross-disciplinary studies are frequently enlightening. In view of the well-known benefits associated with the ingestion of chocolate and the elevated rate of administration of such sweets by patients and their visitors in hospital departments, ENT, cardiology and hematology specialists teamed up to address the issue of the in-hospital survival of chocolates and the factors significantly impacting lifespan [1]. In August 2013, a multicenter prospective study was conducted in several UK hospitals; results were recently published in the British Medical Journal [1]. Test material, 2 boxes of differing makes of chocolates: 1 “Quality Street® ” (Nestlé, Halifax, UK) and 1 “Roses® ” (Cadbury, Bournville, UK) was placed, covertly, in 4 hospital wards. Results showed a mean time to box opening of 12 min (95% CI, 0–24 min); overall, mean chocolate survival was 51 min (95% CI, 39–3 min), with a longer lifespan in the “Quality Street” than in the “Roses” group. One hundred and ninety-nine of the 358 chocolates (78%) were consumed; consumption was mainly accounted for by nurses and paramedics, with physicians coming in a close third. Rate of consumption exhibited an initially exponential curve, evolving toward a more linear pattern. The authors conclude from their data that, to optimize caregiver benefit: • the temporal distribution of chocolates within hospital departments requires greater regularity and; • action should be taken to encourage manufacturers to reverse the present trend toward smaller boxes. The editorial board of the European Annals of Otorhinolaryngology–Head and Neck Diseases fully endorses

1879-7296/$ – see front matter © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.anorl.2014.01.001

these recommendations, and wishes to take this opportunity to inform the readership that the “Editorial” section of the Annals is open to summary reports of articles seen in the international press. Disclosure of interest The authors have not supplied their declaration of conflict of interest. Reference [1] Gajendragadkar PR, Moualed DJ, Nicolson PLR, et al. The survival time of chocolates on hospital wards: covert observational study. BMJ 2013;347:f7198, 10.1136/bmj.f7198.

O. Laccourreye ∗ Université Paris-Descartes Sorbonne Paris Cité, hôpital Européen Georges-Pompidou, AP–HP, Service ORL et Chirurgie Cervico-faciale, 20, rue Leblanc, 75015 Paris cedex 15, France C. Martin Service ORL, Hôpital Nord, 42055 Saint-Étienne cedex, France ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +33 1 56 09 34 63. E-mail address: [email protected] (O. Laccourreye)