This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. It needs additional citations for verification. Tagged since April 2010. It may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Tagged since July 2008. It may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Tagged since July 2008.

Otolaryngologist performing an endoscopic sinus surgical procedure

A 40 watt CO₂ laser used in otolaryngology

Otolaryngology or ENT (ear, nose, and throat) is the branch of medicine and surgery that specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of disorders of the head and neck.

The full name of the specialty is otorhinolaryngology;^[1] (neoclassical Greek and modern Greek: ὠτο(ρ)ρινολαρυγγολογία), also includes ῥινο- - rhino- (root of ῥίς) "nose". The term comes from the Classical Greek roots ὠτ- - ot- (root of οὖς) "ear", λαρυγγ- - laryng- (root of λάρυγξ) "larynx/throat", and the root -logy "study", and it literally means "the study of ear and throat".

Practitioners are called and professionally designated by the more accurate term otolaryngologists– head and neck surgeons, as specialists trained in otolaryngology are experts in surgical conditions of the head and neck. Some people refer to it simply as head and neck surgery. In the United States, otolaryngology is one of the most competitive specialties in medicine in which to obtain a residency position following medical school.^[2][3]

Explanation[link]

Otolaryngologists are medical doctors (MD, DO, MBBS, MBChB, etc.) who, in the United States, complete at least five years of surgical residency training. This is composed of one year in general surgical training and four years in otolaryngology–head and neck surgery; in the past it varied between two and three years of each. In Canada, practitioners complete a five-year residency training after medical school.

Following residency training some otolaryngologists elect to complete advanced subspeciality fellowship training which can be 1–2 years in duration (pediatric otolaryngology,^[4] neuro-otology, laryngology, facial plastic and reconstructive surgery, rhinology, or head and neck oncology).^{[citation needed]}

Subspecialties[link]

(* Currently recognized by American Board of Medical Subspecialties)

Topics in otolaryngology, head and neck surgery[link]

Head and Neck Oncology[link]

• Squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx
• Oral cancer
• Skin Cancer of the head & neck
• Thyroid cancer
• Endocrine surgery of the head and neck (thyroidectomy, parathyroidectomy)
• Microvascular free flap reconstruction
• Skull base surgery

Otology and neuro-otology[link]

• Dizziness
  • BPPV – benign paroxysmal positional vertigo
  • labyrinthitis/vestibular neuronitis
  • Ménière's disease/endolymphatic hydrops
  • Perilymphatic fistula
  • acoustic neuroma

• Hearing loss
• Mastoiditis
• Otitis externa – outer ear or ear canal inflammation
• Otitis media – middle ear inflammation
• Otitis interna – inner ear inflammation
• Perforated eardrum (hole in the eardrum due to infection, trauma, explosion or loud noise)
• Ear surgery

Rhinology[link]

Rhinology pertains to sinus diseases and the anterior skull base.

• Environmental allergies
• Sinusitis – acute, chronic
• Rhinitis
• Empty nose syndrome

Pediatrics[link]

• Adenoidectomy
• Caustic ingestion
• Cricotracheal resection
• Decannulation
• laryngomalacia
• Laryngotracheal reconstruction
• Myringotomy and tubes
• Obstructive sleep apnea – pediatric
• Tonsillectomy

Laryngology[link]

• Dysphonia/hoarseness
  • Laryngitis
  • Reinke's edema
  • Vocal cord nodules and polyps

• Spasmodic dysphonia
• Tracheostomy
• Cancer of the larynx
• Vocology – science and practice of voice habilitation

Notable Otolaryngologists[link]

• Frédéric Justin Collet
• Hallowell Davis
• Wilhelm Kiesselbach
• Heinrich Neumann von Héthárs
• Inokichi Kubo
• Étienne Lombard
• Robert Clyde Lynch
• George E. Shambaugh, Jr.

Facial plastic and reconstructive surgery[link]

Facial plastic and reconstructive surgery is a one-year fellowship open to otolaryngologists and plastic surgeons who wish to specialize in the aesthetic and reconstructive surgery of the head, face, and neck.

• Rhinoplasty and septoplasty
• Facelift (rhytidectomy)
• Browlift
• Blepharoplasty
• Otoplasty
• Genioplasty
• Injectable cosmetic treatments
• Trauma to the face
  • Nasal bone fracture
  • Mandible fracture
  • Orbital fracture
  • Frontal sinus fracture
  • Complex lacerations and soft tissue damage
• Skin cancer (e.g. Basal Cell Carcinoma)

See also[link]

• Head mirror
• Physician
• Surgeon
• Audiology

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Otolaryngology

• NHS Evidence – ENT and audiology
• Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery – journal of the American Academy of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery Foundation
• Acta Oto-laryngologica – a journal
• Journal of Voice – a journal
• Logopedics Phoniatrics Vocology – journal of the Nordic Cooperation Council of Logopedics and Phoniatrics and of the British Voice Association

Societies[link]

• American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
• Association for Research in Otolaryngology
• The American Academy of Otolaryngic Allergy
• Canadian Society of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
• The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society
• British Association of Otorhinolaryngologists – Head & Neck Surgeons
• Association of Otolaryngology Administrators
• The Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery
• The Voice Foundation
• The TWJ Foundation
• American Head and Neck Society