Department of Otolaryngology Annual Report
Fiscal Year 2010

The year 2010 has been a busy and productive year for the Department of Otolaryngology at the Infirmary in all aspects of its mission, including clinical care, education and research. The Department is appreciative to the hospital and its’ Board of Directors which have made this success possible. 

New Recruits
A. Hospital based clinical staff
Benjamin Bleier, M.D. – General Otolaryngology/Rhinology/Paranasal Sinus Surgery
Gerald Healy, M.D. –teaching capacity in the Division of Pediatric Otolaryngology
Ayesha Khalid, M.D. – General Otolaryngology/Rhinology at the MEEI/Concord Suburban Center
Oon Tot Tan, M.D. – Director, future Laser Center, MEEI
Greg Whitman, M.D. – Otoneurology at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital and MEEI

B. Non-hospital based staff
Raffi DerSarkissian, M.D. – Plastic Surgery
William Innis, M.D. – General Otolaryngology
Kyle Keojampa, M.D. - General Otolaryngology
Hien Tierney, M.D. – General Otolaryngology
Ellen Weinberg, M.D. – General Otolaryngology

C. New Residents
Dunia Abdul-Aziz – Harvard Medical School
Gillian Diercks - Columbia U. College of Physicians and Surgeons
Aaron Remenschneider - Yale U. School of Medicine
Ahmad Sedaghat – Johns Hopkins

D. New Clinical Fellows:
Jihad Achkar - Laryngology
Audrey Erman - Head and Neck
Thomas Gallagher - Pediatrics
Jamie Litvack - Rhinology
Alicia Quesnel - Neurotology
Andre Potenza - Thyroid
Joshua Silverman - Laryngology

III. Hospital Promotions
Surgeon
Ramsey Alsarraf
David Bowling
Ramon Franco
George Kazda
James Rocco
 

Associate Surgeon
Keith Saxon

Assistant Surgeon
Jeannie Chung
Tom Costello
Jaimie DeRosa
Kevin Emerick
Ron deVenecia

IV. Faculty Promotions
Professor
Michael Cunningham
Bertrand Delgutte
Conrad Wall III

Associate Professor
Chris Halpin
Leila Mankarious

V. Faculty Awards and Prizes
• Ralph Metson, M.D. and Jo Shapiro, M.D. were recognized for their role in clinical teaching by an appointment to the Senior Teaching Faculty by MEEI.
• M. Charles Liberman Ph.D. will deliver the Carhart Memorial Lecture to the American Auditory Society at their annual meeting in March 2011.
• Saumil Merchant, M.D. accepted an invitation to serve on the Advisory Council of the NIDCD. He will be delivering the Franklin Rizer lecture at the Fall Meeting of the American Neurotology Society, and he delivered the Ben Senturia Oration at Washington University, St. Louis.
• Jennifer Melcher Ph.D. joined the Scientific Advisory Committee of the American Tinnitus Association and editorial board of JARO, Journal of the Association for Research in Otolaryngology).
• Ruth Anne Eatock, Ph.D. presented the keynote speech at the EAR meeting at Columbia University in June 2010 and has been selected vice-chair of the Gordon Research Conference meeting on the Auditory System schedule3d for July 2012.
• Christopher Shera Ph.D. was invited to participate in Good Vibrations: The Science of Sound at the 2010 World Science Festival in New York City.
• Stacey Gray was the recipient of the Montgomery Award for Excellence in Teaching, given by the 2010 graduating residents.
• Chris Halpin was a co-recipient of the 2010 Martin Prize for Excellence in Clinical Research for contributions in establishing lasting hearing improvement in patients with Neurofibromatosis type 2.
• Sharon Kujawa was the recipient of the Distinguished Achievement Award given by the American Academy of Audiology for exceptional achievements in teaching, research, and clinical audiology.
• Daniel Lee was the recipient of an AAO-HNS Honor Award to recognize his dedication to volunteer service in his field.
• Gregory Randolph received a Letter of Merit from Governor Deval Patrick for his “outstanding and dedicated commitment to the field of thyroid oncology and surgery,” and a Certificate of Merit from the AAO-HNS for directing a delegation to Russia to meet with Russian leaders in Otolaryngology.

VI. New equipment/technology
1. Mass. Eye and Ear Laser Center, opens December 2010, 9th floor
2. Balance and Vestibular Center opened at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital
3. MEEI/Concord Suburban Center officially opened September 1, 2010

VIII. Research successes
Our newest faculty recruit, Dr. Dan Polley, arrived in March 2010 from the Department of Otolaryngology at Vanderbilt University. His interest is neural plasticity of the auditory cortex, especially that associated with peripheral hearing loss. A new laboratory, “The Neural Plasticity Research Unit” was completed in February 2010 on the 4th floor of the connecting building.
Christopher Halpin, PhD was awarded a Conference Grant from the NIDCD to organize the 11th International Mechanics of Hearing Workshop to be held in Williamstown, Mass in July 2011.
The Eaton Peabody Laboratory is grateful for philanthropic support from a variety of sources, including a $250,000 grant from the Tillotson Foundation earmarked to purchase a new confocal microscope. Eleven faculty members individually received stimulus grants sponsored by the NIDCD in 2010.

IX. Research grants
Research support from the federal government remains the major source of support for all ongoing research activities in the EPL. During the past year, EPL investigators were particularly successful in obtaining new federal funding (most of it from the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders: NIDCD) to pursue research into the mechanisms of hearing and deafness.
• Albert Edge Ph.D. was awarded a new grant from the NIDCD to study “A cell-specific model for hearing loss”. The work continues the Edge lab’s focus on stem-cell based therapies for sensory cell loss in an animal model. This award was made under the R21 program, which is specifically targeted to fund innovative new projects.
• Tessa Hadlock, M.D. received an NIH grant for the “Surgical and rehabilitative management of facial nerve injury.”
• Christopher Hartnick, M.D. received a grant from the NIH entitled “Randomized controlled trial of voice and reflux therapy in children with vocal nodules”
• Barbara Herrmann, Ph.D., received a grant from the American Otological Society to study the “Diagnostic applications of inhibition depth derived from vestibular evoked myogenic potentials.”
• Eric Holbrook is the co-investigator on a grant from the NIH/NIDCD to study olfactory tissue. The grant awards over $2 million over five years. He is working with Dr. James Schwob, Tufts University.
• Michael McKenna, M.D. received a grant from the NIH for “Drug-eluting stapes prosthesis for the prevention of sensorineural hearing loss.”
• Saumil Merchant M.D. successfully renewed the NIH contract for the Temporal Bone Registry, an award totaling $2.9 million over 5 years. This registry facilitates the donation, acquisition, processing and scientific analysis of human inner ears to better understand the mechanisms of deafness.
• Jennifer Melcher Ph.D. was awarded a “Challenge Grant” from the NIDCD to study networks of brain activity in tinnitus patients using functional magnetic resonance imaging.
• Christopher Shera Ph.D. was awarded a conference grant from the NIDCD to organize the 11th International Mechanics of Hearing Workshop, to be held July 2011, in Williamstown, MA
• Marcello Peppi Ph.D. received a Deafness Research Foundation Grant to study the “Molecular mechanisms of dexamethasone-mediated protection from acoustic trauma”.
• Heidi Nakajima M.D, was awarded an R03 grant from the NIDCD to carry out "Investigations of Human Auditory Mechanics"
• Judith Kempfle M.D. received a DRF grant to study the “Influence of bone morphogenetic protein and retinoic acid on differentiation of inner ear stem cells”.
• Fuxin Shi Ph.D. received an R03 grant from the NIDCD to study “Activation of inner ear stem cells by beta-catenin”.
• Mark Parker Ph.D. received an R03 grant from the NIDCD to study “Targeted expression of Atoh1 in cochlear supporting cells”.

Educational Highlights
CME Courses for 2010
April 9-11 Update in Head and Neck Cancer: 2010
April 22-23 Endoscopic Surgery of the Sinuses and Eustachian Tube
May 15-16 Update on Pediatric Airway, Voice and Swallowing
June 7-9 International Otopathology Society (HFS Society)
June 10-12 Update in Otology and Otologic Surgery
September 25 Stroboscopy for Voice Disorders
October 29-20 Surgery of the Thyroid and Parathyroid Glands

Guest speakers - 2010
March 18 Roy Casiano, M.D., Professor and Vice Chair, Otolaryngology, U Miami
“Endoscopic anterior skull base resection”
April 21 Scott Plotkin, MD, PhD, Director, Neurofibromatosis Clinic, MGH
“Hearing improvement after Avastatin (Bevacizumab) in patients with NF2
June 3 Daniel Alam, Chief, Facial Aesthetic & Reconstructive Surgery, Cleveland Clinic
“Face transplant”
June 24 Robert Sofferman, MD, Professor of Surgery, University of Vermont

Community service and outreach activities:
April 16 Annual head and neck free cancer screening clinic with Dr. Kevin Emerick and the head and neck staff
September 25 Audiology continued its tradition of public education and service by hosting their 10th Annual Public Forum on Hearing and Hearing Loss. Lectures were provided y Drs. Joseph Nadol from Otolaryngology, Chris Halpin and Barbara Herrmann from Audiology, and Charlie Liberman representing the Eaton Peabody research laboratories.
November 6 Annual public forum on sinusitis, Drs. BuSaba, Gray, Holbrook, co-directors

Ongoing collaboration with the R.O.S.E. Fund for abused and battered women

Joseph B. Nadol, Jr., M.D.
Chairman