Winter 2023 Newsletter

Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Greetings from Chair

Dear Colleagues,

As we approach the holiday season, it is customary to take stock of the year that is coming to a close. End-of-the-year celebrations have been with us since at least Babylonian times, serving numerous purposes – to reflect, to honor and appreciate people who are important to us, and to set goals and consider changes for the future.

Our department has continued to draw strength from our unwavering commitment to our tripartite mission: to deliver exceptional, innovative care in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery; to advance frontiers of knowledge; and to educate patients, clinicians and researchers who will serve and inspire the global community to expand what is possible in medicine. Through many discussions over the last year, we have decided that a foundational value that will allow us to accomplish our mission and vision is kindness. Kindness is the medium that holds us together, and it is also the message.

Looking at the year ahead, and the fractured world we live in, our role as healers is of paramount importance. Let’s renew our commitment to be kind and caring. 

I wish you and your loved ones revitalizing holidays and a healthy, joyous, and prosperous new year!

Tina

Konstantina Stankovic, MD, PhD
Bertarelli Foundation Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery and, by courtesy, of Neurosurgery


Please Consider Gifting for 2023 Calendar Year End

Our Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery Gift Fund is a valuable source of unrestricted support that impacts every aspect of what we do, including research, health care and services, physician and scientist training, and community outreach. With gifts to this Fund, OHNS is able to respond more rapidly to new ideas and support the areas of greatest promise.

Spotlight

John B. Sunwoo, MD
Edward C. and Amy H. Sewall Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery and, by courtesy, of Dermatology,Chief of Head & Neck Surgery, Director of Head & Neck Cancer Research
Ruth O'Hara
Director, Spectrum, Senior Associate Dean, Research and Lowell W. and Josephine Q. Berry Professor

John Sunwoo, MD, and Ruth O’Hara, PhD are the principal investigators at Stanford on a newly awarded U01 grant from NIH/NIDCR. The Department’s Division of Head & Neck Surgery has been collaborating with the University of the Pacific (UoP) Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in San Francisco to develop impactful clinical, research, and educational initiatives that span the two institutions, particularly on the subject of premalignant oral lesions and oral cancer.

Highlights

 

Dean Lloyd Minor, MD has been appointed to the newly created position of Vice President for Medical Affairs at Stanford University.  

 

Lisa Orloff, MD, has been awarded the prestigious American Thyroid Association (ATA) Woman-of-the-Year Award.

 

Matthew Fitzgerald, PhD, has been awarded the Ear and Hearing Editors’ Award for his manuscript entitled “Preliminary guidelines for replacing word recognition in quiet with speech in noise in the routine audiologic test battery.”

 

Lindsay Moore, MD  has received funding from the Women in Otolaryngology Endowment Committee with the American Academy of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery for her project entitled “Gender Disparities Amongst Surgeon Scientists in Otolaryngology.”  

 

Vasu Divi, MD has received a clinical trial from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc for the project entitled “R2810-ONC-1788: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Double-Blind Study Of Adjuvant Cemiplimab Versus PlaceboAfter Surgery And Radiation Therapy In Patients With High Risk CutaneousSquamous Cell Carcinoma.”

 

Robson Capasso, MD has received a grant from Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment for his project entitled “Albert Einstein Hospital Upluxo Program: Disrupting HospitalEnvironment for Fabric Reutilization.”

 

Nicolas Grillet, PhD has received Bridge Support funding from Stanford MCHRI for his project entitled “Function of LOXHD1 in mechanosensory hair cells.”  

 

Nathan Reticker-Flynn, PhD, and John Sunwoo, MD have received a grant from Stanford’s Sarafan ChEM-H for their project entitled “Massively parallel TCR screening of tumor-reactive T cells from human head and neck cancer lymph nodes.”

 

Anthony Ricci, PhD, and Kristen Steenerson, MD, received a grant from The Wu Tsai Neuroscience: Translate Oversight Committee for their project entitled, “Small molecule K+ channel modulator to treat acute episodes of peripheral vertigo.”

Team News

Grace Kim
Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Grace Kim, MD has been promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Otolaryngology.


Kara Meister, MD, FAAP, FACS
Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery, Associate Clinic Chief of Pediatric Otolaryngology

Kara Meister, MD has been promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor in the Division of Pediatric Otolaryngology.


Heather Starmer, PhD CCC-SLP, BCS-S
Clinical Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery, Director of the Head and Neck Speech and Swallowing Rehabilitation Program (Stanford Cancer Center)

Heather Starmer, MA, CCC-SLP, BCS-S has been promoted to the rank of Clinical Professor in the Division of Head and Neck Surgery.


Michael Chang, MD
Clinical Instructor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Michael Chang, MD has been promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor in the Division of Rhinology.


Seth J. Davis, MD
Clinical Instructor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Seth Davis, MD has been promoted to the rank of Assistant Professor in the Division of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery.


Shefin Sam George
Instructor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Shefin Sam George, PhD has been appointed to the rank of Instructor in the Division of Research.


Minjin Jeong has been promoted to the rank of Instructor in the Division of Otology-Neurotology.


Lukas Landegger, MD, PhD, has joined the department as Instructor in the Division of Otology-Neurotology and recently received a grant from the American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy for his project entitled “ AAV-mediated gene therapy to target vestibular schwannoma.”


Betsy (Elizabeth) Stickels, CCC-SLP has joined the department to bring speech therapy services to Emeryville and help grow the gender-affirming voice program.


Edward J. Damrose, MD was honored to represent Stanford OHNS at the Mayo Clinic in their “Organizational Professionalism and Values in Health Care:  Navigating Contemporary Challenges” fall symposium in Rochester, MN.


Tulio Valdez, MD, MSc
Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS) and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics

Tulio Valdez, MD, MSc, was the keynote speaker at the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists meeting in Orlando, FL.


This quarter, Robson Capasso, MD, teamed up with two of our outstanding former trainees for an intensive, high-level course at the Medical University of South Carolina. Guiding our former trainees to pay it forward represents a model for elevating surgical education across institutions.

As an advisor for Stanford Byers Center for Biodesign, Dr. Capasso is actively involved in mentoring global fellows in the process of the needs-driven healthcare innovation process.


Peter Koltai, MD recently became a member of Gallery House, a cooperative art gallery of 30 Bay Area artists.


Achintya K. Bhowmik, PhD
Adjunct Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery

Achintya Bhowmik, MD, was awarded the 2023 Gold Globee Award for the "Most InnovativePerson of the Year in Healthcare, Pharmaceuticals, Biotech, Health Products & Services" for leading the development of hearing devices with integrated deep neural network accelerators.

Events


Stanford OHNS held its 14th Annual Research Day.


Stanford OHNS held a special Grand Rounds Lecture with Jennifer R. Grandis, MD, Distinguished Professor of Otolaryngology — Head and NeckSurgery from UCSF.

Please view the recording of Dr. Grandis’s lecture titled “Building and Sustaining Careers in Academic Medicine: A Gender Equity Lens” below.


Stanford OHNS Grand Rounds Calendar 2023-24

On a weekly basis, we hold our grand rounds which include formal talks by Stanford faculty, trainees, and distinguished guests about everything from fascinating cases to the most current technological breakthroughs in global health. Please visit this link to view previously recorded rounds and our calendar schedule.


Stanford OHNS held a special Grand Rounds Lecture with Jennifer R. Grandis, MD, Distinguished Professor of Otolaryngology — Head and NeckSurgery from UCSF.

Please view the recording of Dr. Grandis’s lecture titled “Building and Sustaining Careers in Academic Medicine: A Gender Equity Lens” below.



Upcoming Stanford/Langmore FEES Course

Please save the date for the first annual Stanford/Langmore Foundation FEES Course, which will occur January 26-27, 2024 led by Dr. Ann Kearney, CScD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S. Please visit this link to learn more and register.


Stanford OHNS 2023 Photo of the Year Peter Santa Maria, MBBS, PhD

“Lighting a Spark in Africa: Victoria Falls Zimbabwe at the Spark Africa Launch”

Global Engagement

Karthik Balakrishnan, MD, MPH, FAAP, FACS
Associate Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery, Susan B. Ford Surgeon-in-Chief at Stanford Children's Health, Co-chair at Stanford Medicine Teamwork Advisory Committee, Medical Director at Surgical Performance Improvement, LPCH

Karthik Balakrishnan, MD, MPH, played a major role in helping a young singer recover her voice.


Peter Santa Maria, MBBS, PhD, and Mario Gaspar traveled to Taipei, Taiwan, in July 2023 to attend the annual SPARK GLOBAL update meeting.


Mai Thy Truong, MD
Clinical Associate Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics, Clinic Chief of Pediatric Otolaryngology, Fellowship Director of Pediatric Otolaryngology

Mai Thy Truong, MD was interviewed by Ivanhoe Broadcast News about her work with microtia and how it’s affected a Bay Area family. Watch the news segment by clicking the link above.

Recent Publications + Podcasts + Videos

A Consistent Endoscopic Landmark to Identify the Anterior Ethmoidal Artery.  
Mundy DC, Yan CH, Tyler MA, Patel ZM. Laryngoscope. Published online August 14, 2023.  

Acoustic resonance therapy is safe and effective for the treatment of nasal congestion in rhinitis: A randomized sham-controlled trial.  
Luong AU, Yong M, Hwang PH, et al. International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology. 2023;n/a(n/a). 

An Exploratory Analysis of the Chronic Rhinosinusitis Online Support Community.  
Ulloa R, Tam B, Orozco FR, Castellanos CX, Chang MT, Hur K. OTO Open. 2023;7(4):e88.  

Artificial Intelligence in Rhinology, Otolaryngology, and Beyond.  
Patel ZM. Bulletin: The Official Content Hub of the AAOHNS. Published online September 1, 2023. 

Artificial Intelligence Versus Expert Plastic Surgeon: Comparative Study Shows ChatGPT “Wins” Rhinoplasty Consultations: Should We Be Worried?  
Durairaj KK, Baker O, Bertossi D, et al. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine. Published online November 20, 2023.  

Association of Decreased Enhancement of Nasoseptal Flap on Postoperative Magnetic Resonance Imaging with the Risk of Complication.  
Wingrove PM, Arani KN, Snyderman CH, et al. J Neurol Surg B Skull Base. Published online November 15, 2023. 

Automating the Standardized Cosmesis and Health Nasal Outcomes Survey Classification with Convolutional Neural Networks.  
Bhowmik RT, Kandathil CK, Most SP. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine. 2023;25(6):487-493.  

β-Catenin transcriptional activity is required for establishment of inner pillar cell identity during cochlear development.  
Ebeid M, Kishimoto I, Roy P, Zaidi MAA, Cheng AG, Huh SH. PLOS Genetics. 2023;19(8):e1010925.  

Combined high-flow bypass and endovascular sacrifice for dysplastic cavernous internal carotid artery aneurysm for recurrent epistaxis.  
Gauden AJ, Dodd R, Steinberg GK. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience. 2023;118:175. 

Cost-effectiveness Analysis of Inferior Turbinate Reduction and Immunotherapy in Allergic Rhinitis.  
Yong M, Aravinthan K, Kirubalingam K, et al. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Current and Emerging Therapies for Chronic Subjective Tinnitus.  
Park KW, Kullar P, Malhotra C, Stankovic KM. Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2023;12(20):6555.  

Do you sound like you? Gender-affirming voice therapy allows people to speak authentically.
Conger K. Scope. Published November 14, 2023.  

Effects of Short-term Electronic(e)-Cigarette Aerosol Exposure in the Mouse Larynx.  
Easwaran M, Maria CS, Martinez JD, et al. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

End-to-end deep learning classification of vocal pathology using stacked vowels.  
Liu GS, Hodges JM, Yu J, Sung CK, Erickson-DiRenzo E, Doyle PC. Laryngoscope Investigative Otolaryngology. 2023;8(5):1312-1318.  

Environmental Risk Factors for Pediatric Epistaxis vary by Climate Zone.  
Wei EX, Green A, Chang MT, Hwang PH, Sidell DR, Qian ZJ. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Eradication of Bacterial Persister Cells By Leveraging Their Low Metabolic Activity Using Adenosine Triphosphate Coated Gold Nanoclusters. 
Bekale LA, Sharma D, Bacacao B, Chen J, Santa Maria PL. Nano Today. 2023;51:101895.

Eustachian tube dysfunction symptoms after endonasal skull base surgery.  
Grimm D, Daum R, Castro Silva BR, et al. International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Septoplasty for Nasal Valve Collapse: A Retrospective Study.  
Green A, Wei EX, Kandathil CK, Youn GM, Shah JP, Most SP. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine. Published online October 20, 2023.  

Evaluation of Asymmetries in Speech-in Noise Abilities in Audiologic Screening for Vestibular Schwannoma.  
Jason Qian Z, Vaisbuch Y, Gianakas SP, et al. Ear and Hearing. 2023;44(6):1540.  

External Ear Disease: Keratinaceous Lesions of the External Auditory Canal.  
Munjal T, Kullar PJ, Alyono J. Otolaryngologic Clinics of North America. 2023;56(5):897-908.  

Factors Associated With Otolaryngologists Performing Tracheotomy.  
Soliman SI, Panuganti BA, Francis DO, et al. JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery. Published online October 5, 2023.  

Factors that predict pursuing sinus surgery in the era of highly effective modulator therapy.
Beswick DM, Han EJ, Mace JC, et al. International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Global epidemiologic patterns of oropharyngeal cancer incidence trends.  
Zumsteg ZS, Luu M, Rosenberg PS, et al. JNCI: Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Published online August 21, 2023:djad169.  

Head-to-Head Comparison of ChatGPT Versus Google Search for Medical Knowledge Acquisition.  
Ayoub NF, Lee YJ, Grimm D, Divi V. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Hearing Aid Tech Isn’t Just for Listening Anymore with Dr. Achin Bhowmik
Gartenberg C, Lin F. 2023 Nov 10. 

Identification of immune-related candidate biomarkers in plasma of patients with sporadic vestibular schwannoma. 
Vasilijic S, Atai NA, Hyakusoku H, et al. Sci Adv. 2023;9(45):eadf7295.

Immune Profiling of Secreted Factors from Human Vestibular Schwannoma Cells and Tumor-associated Macrophages. 
Stankovic KM, Batts S, Welling DB, Vasilijic S. Laryngoscope. Published online September 30, 2023. 

International consensus statement on allergy and rhinology: Sinonasal tumors.  
Kuan EC, Wang EW, Adappa ND, et al. International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology. n/a(n/a).  

Large-scale annotated dataset for cochlear hair cell detection and classification.  
Buswinka CJ, Rosenberg DB, Simikyan RG, et al. Published online September 1, 2023:2023.08.30.553559.  

Method for Collecting Single Epithelial Cells from the Mouse Larynx.  
Khan MI, Easwaran M, Martinez JD, Kimura A, Erickson-DiRenzo E. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a). doi:10.1002/lary.30970

Multicenter Survival Analysis and Application of an Olfactory Neuroblastoma Staging Modification Incorporating Hyams Grade.  
Choby G, Geltzeiler M, Almeida JP, et al. JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery. 2023;149(9):837-844. 

Nonopioid Versus Opioid Analgesics After Thyroid and Parathyroid Surgery: A Systematic Review.  
Moon PK, Wei EX, Hamid MS, Borghi JA, Megwalu UC. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Open Preservation Rhinoplasty.  
Patel PN, Most SP. Facial Plastic Surgery. 2023;39(5):537-546.  

Oral cavity cancer in young, non-smoking, and non-drinking patients: A contemporary review.
Tran Q, Maddineni S, Arnaud EH, et al. Critical Reviews in Oncology/Hematology. 2023;190:104112.  

Outcomes of Diced Cartilage Dorsal Augmentation in Dorsal Aesthetic Deformities.  
El Abany A, Kandathil CK, Castillo N, Abdelhamid AS, Kimura K, Most SP. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine. Published online September 14, 2023. 

Parosteal Lipoma Overlying an Osteochondroma of the Hyoid Bone: A Case Report and Literature Review.  
Green A, Wei EX, Chang-Graham A, Holmes B, Smith A, Sung CK. The Laryngoscope. n/a(n/a).  

Predictive factors for decreased baseline quality of life in patients with sinonasal malignancies.
Fleseriu CM, Beswick DM, Maoz SL, et al. International Forum of Allergy & Rhinology. n/a(n/a).  

Preliminary Guidelines for Replacing Word-Recognition in Quiet With Speech in Noise Assessment in the Routine Audiologic Test Battery.  
Fitzgerald MB, Gianakas SP, Qian ZJ, Losorelli S, Swanson AC. Ear and Hearing. 2023;44(6):1548.  

Prenatal Diagnosis and Postnatal Management of a Fetal Pericardial Mass.  
Weigel N, Hintz S, Kaplinski M, et al. NeoReviews. 2023;24(10):e683-e689.  

Prevalence and Characteristics Associated with Positive Body Dysmorphic Disorder Screening Among Patients Presenting for Cosmetic Facial Plastic Surgery.  
Wei EX, Kimura KS, Abdelhamid AS, et al. Facial Plastic Surgery & Aesthetic Medicine. Published online November 7, 2023.  

Promoting Surgeon-Scientists in Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery-From Bench to Bedside.  
Kosaraju N, Keating DP, Kim GS, Moore LS, Stankovic KM. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. Published online October 19, 2023. doi:10.1001/jamaoto.2023.3353

Racial Disparities in 30-day Readmissions after Surgery for Head and Neck Cancer.  
Huang AE, Shih JJ, Sunwoo JB, Pollom E, Taparra K. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Radiofrequency ablation of benign thyroid nodules: A prospective, multi-institutional North American experience.
Russell JO, Desai DD, Noel JE, et al. Surgery. Published online November 10, 2023.  

Rhinolithiasis misdiagnosed as intranasal osteoma: Diagnostic challenges in the telehealth era.
Kiessling P, Hwang P, Chang M. SAGE Open Medical Case Reports. 2023;11:2050313X231207204.  

Risk of Aspiration Increased by Post-swallow Residue in Infant Fiberoptic Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES).  
Chang J, Okland T, Johnson A, Speiser N, Seetharaman A, Sidell D. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a). 

Selection of viral capsids and promoters affects the efficacy of rescue of Tmprss3-deficient cochlea.  
Aaron KA, Pekrun K, Atkinson PJ, et al. Molecular Therapy - Methods & Clinical Development. 2023;30:413-428.  

Sporadic vestibular schwannoma in a pediatric population: a case series.  
Kosaraju N, Moore LS, Mulders JY, Blevins NH.Childs Nerv Syst. Published online October 27, 2023.  

Surgical Correction of Nasal Obstruction and Its Effect on Eustachian Tube Dysfunction Symptoms.  
Daum R, Grimm D, Castro Silva BR, et al. Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery. n/a(n/a).  

Teen Sings After Complex, Rare Airway Surgery - Stanford Medicine Children’s Health Blog.
Nichols L. Healthier, Happy Lives Blog. Published October 8, 2023. 

The Olfactory System: Basic Anatomy and Physiology for General Otorhinolaryngologists.  
Han SA, Kim JK, Cho DY, Patel ZM, Rhee CS. Clinical and Experimental Otorhinolaryngology. Published online September 4, 2023.  

The Serpentine Sign: A Reliable Endoscopic and Radiographic Finding in Empty Nose Syndrome.  
Dholakia SS, Grimm D, Daum R, et al. The Laryngoscope. 2023;n/a(n/a).  

Toll-like Receptor Agonists Are Unlikely to Provide Benefits in Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.  
Maddineni S, Chen M, Baik F, Divi V, Sunwoo JB, Finegersh A. Cancers. 2023;15(17):4386.  

VM-PATHI Correlates With Cognitive Function Improvement After Successful Treatment in Patients With Vestibular Migraine.  
Patel EJ, Hum M, Gardi A, Steenerson KK, Rizk HG, Sharon JD. Otology & Neurotology. 2023;44(8):813.