Otolaryngology

Otolaryngology / Head and Neck Surgery professional staff diagnoses and attends to disorders using both medical and surgical procedures (including microscopic surgery) in the following areas of expertise:

External and Middle Ear

Tympanoplasty – either injury or trauma can lead to the perforation of the eardrum, which in turn leads to loss of hearing. If the damage is slight, the eardrum can heal by itself. But in a case of major injury, tympanoplasty is the only method of repairing the damage. Tympanoplasty encompasses surgical removal of skin from the patient`s body and using this skin graft to construct a membrane to replace the injured eardrum. If the damage extends to the stapes bone in the ear, the surgical staff may proceed to stapedotomy.

Stapedotomy is a delicate surgical procedure performed on the tiny bones in the middle ear. The ear is divided into three chambers, and any disorder affecting the ear, be it trauma or disease, may incur significant hearing loss. Stapedotomy is conducted on the stapes, the minute bone in the ear that helps transport sound to the inner ear. Sometimes, the three stapes merge (otosclerosis), leading to hearing loss. Stapedotomy is a procedure which removes the stapes and replaces them with artificial “stapes” composed of Teflon-like material. Stapedotomy results differ from individual to individual so extensive consultation with the attending professional is required before you can undergo surgery. In Israel, all hospitals have ENT Departments that employ state-of-the-art stapedotomy techniques to minimize discomfort and shorten recovery time.

Otolaryngology in Israel

Laser stapedotomy is a well-established surgical procedure for the treatment of conductive hearing loss resulting from otosclerosis. The technique creates a miniscule opening in the stapes (the tiniest bone in the human anatomy) in which to attach a prosthetic. The CO2 laser enables the surgeon to create tiny, accurately positioned holes without raising the temperature of the inner ear fluid by over one degree, making this a highly safe surgical solution. The diameter of the hole is predetermined respective of the prosthesis diameter. Treatment may be completed in a single visit.