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The Department of Otolaryngology will be hosting the 19th Annual Ann B. & Julius N. Hicks Lectureship in Otolaryngology and Residents’ Research Day on April 27, 2024. The lecture will be held at the UAB Hilton in Downtown Birmingham and is open to our alumni, faculty, residents, fellows, healthcare professionals, and outside otolaryngologists in the southeastern region. 

Featured Guest Speaker

Amber Luong, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor and Vice Chair for Academic Affairs
Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
McGovern Medical School of the University of Texas Health Science Center- Houston

SAMPLE 2023 SCHEDULE

Attendee Registration

The Department of Otolaryngology received 358 residency applications, held 64 interviews, and matched with four new residents. The department is excited to welcome our incoming PGY-1 residents.

In 2019, UAB had more than 1,100 employees eligible for service award recognition. Eight of those recipients include faculty and staff from the Department of Otolaryngology.

David Alexander, M.D., is being honored for his outstanding patient care during his last year of residency with the UAB Department of Otolaryngology. David Alexander, M.D.

UAB Department of Otolaryngology Assistant Professor, Erin Buczek, M.D., is one of six specialists leading the new UAB Multidisciplinary Endocrine Tumor Clinic. Erin Buczek, M.D.

Gregory W. Randolph, M.D., FACS, FACE The 2019 George W. Barber Jr. Lectureship, "Communication and Complications in Thyroid Surgery 2019," was presented by a world-renowned expert in the field of otolaryngology, Gregory W. Randolph, M.D., FACS, FACE. The Claire and John Bertucci Endowed Chair in thyroid surgical oncology at Harvard Medical School is a professor in otolaryngology and surgeon at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. 

Dr. Randolph shared the history of thyroid surgery to help frame current practice. He also discussed future advances in thyroid surgery, including the de-escalation of treatment for thyroid cancer, intraoperative nerve monitoring, and molecular testing for thyroid disease.

“It was a unique and insightful discussion that can broadly be applied to many areas within otolaryngology,” said Dr. Erin Buczek, UAB Otolaryngology Assistant Professor and Associate Residency Program Director.

The lecture highlighted Dr. Randolph’s vast experience in endocrine surgery and practical considerations for thyroid and parathyroid surgery. He explained how to navigate difficult situations and potential complications from surgery.

“The lectureship is an excellent opportunity for our fellows, residents and medical students to learn from experts in otolaryngology,” said Dr. Buczek.

The residents and fellows presented cases to Dr. Randolph. They were able to discuss management and topics directly related to patients cared for at UAB.

Do-Yeon Cho, M.D., M.S.Do-Yeon Cho, M.D., M.S. , has been promoted to associate professor. Dr. Cho graduated from Chungbuk National University School of Medicine, M.D. and Sung Kyun Kwan University School of Medicine, M.S. He completed his otorhinolaryngology residency at Samsung Medical Center, rhinology research fellowship and otolaryngology residency at Sanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Cho specializes in acute and chronic rhinosinusitis, nasal obstruction, hyposmia and anosmia, cystic fibrosis, allergic rhinitis, airway epithelial regeneration and repair, and endoscopic skull base surgery.

Jason Warram, Ph.D.Jason Warram, Ph.D., has been promoted from assistant professor to associate professor. Dr. Warram graduated from UAB with a doctorate in molecular and cellular pathology. After completing his fellowship in advanced medical imaging at UAB, he joined our faculty. Dr. Warram specializes in development and clinical translation of novel imaging agents, clinical trials in cancer imaging, image-guided pathology, molecular biology techniques, multi-modality techniques in surgical oncologic imaging, nuclear imaging, combination therapeutic strategies, anti-angiogenic therapy, and antibody-based imaging and therapy.  

The UAB Department of Otolaryngology is excited to introduce four new members to the faculty team: Drs. Erika Walsh, Jessica Grayson, Carissa Thomas and Hari Jeyarajan:

Dr. Walsh joins our faculty following a two year fellowship in Otology/Neurotology at the Michigan Ear Institute. She earned her medical degree from Harvard Medical School and completed her residency with us here at UAB. Dr. McGrew had the pleasure of training Erika throughout her residency and advocated for her recruitment, recognizing her skill in managing both common and complex conditions of the ear, temporal bone and lateral skull base. Dr. Walsh is currently accepting new patients and her clinic opens mid-August 2019.

Dr. Grayson will be joining us after the completion of her fellowship in Rhinology and Anterior Skull Base Surgery in Sydney, Australia. She also completed her residency with our department and is skilled in the treatment of complex inflammatory and neoplastic disorders of the nose, sinuses and anterior skull base. Dr. Grayson is currently accepting new patients and her clinic opens mid-August 2019.

Dr. Thomas joins our faculty after a fellowship in Head and Neck Surgical Oncology at the University of Toronto. She received both her medical degree and PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology at Baylor College of Medicine, and then completed her residency at the University of Colorado. Dr. Thomas specializes in head and neck oncology and microvascular reconstruction. Her research interest includes the interaction between the microbiome and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Dr. Thomas is currently accepting new patients and her clinic opens mid-September 2019.

Dr. Jeyarajan joins our faculty from Melbourne, Australia. His background is diverse with fellowship and subspecialty training in several key areas including head and neck oncology (UAB), skull base surgery (London, UK) and airway reconstruction (London, UK). We were fortunate to recruit Dr. Jeyarajan back to UAB as a surgical hospitalist. He will take the lead for difficult airway patients and will be positioned to provide care for patients requiring urgent transfer to UAB, in-house consults and additional head and neck and skull base cases. He has hit the ground running and we believe our referring community will notice a difference in ease of access for complex patients requiring care at UAB.

To celebrate our three 2019 graduates, Drs. David Alexander, Sean Evans and Matthew Fort, the UAB Department of Otolaryngology hosted a golf tournament the morning of Saturday, June 15. The group broke up into teams for a little friendly competition before heading to the Wine Loft that evening for the big celebration.

Alumni, UAB Otolaryngology faculty and staff, residents and their families all joined in celebrating (and roasting) the departing PGY-5s. Check out where our talented residents are headed:

Dr. David Alexander will be moving to Lexington, Kentucky to join a private practice called Kentucky Ear, Nose and Throat. Dr. Alexander's favorite memory of residency is the chief trip to COSM in Austin, Texas. "It was a great weekend and a nice way to celebrate the last five years with my co-chiefs Sean and Matthew," said Alexander.

Dr. Sean Evans will be completing a fellowship with the Department of Otolaryngology at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Matthew Fort will remain in Birmingham! He will begin his career with Southern ENT and Sinus Center.

We wish them all the best in their future endeavors!

Dr. Glenn Peters, Julius N. Hicks Professor of Otolaryngology and Associate Chief Medical Officer for UAB Health System, is a seasoned veteran of the Department of Otolaryngology. His love of science and desire to help others led him to become a physician and keeps him going each day. Take 5 with Dr. Peters:

1. What made you want to become a physician?
   My love of science and the desire to help others.

2. What is the best part of your job?
   Interacting with patients and their families and being able to physically treat a patient's illness through surgery.

3. Who is a mentor who has had a profound influence on your life?
   My grandfather, Dr. WR Eidson, Dr. Juilius N. Hicks and Dr. William Maddox.

4. What does the future of medicine look like in your area of interest?
   I see nothing but continued advances in science and technology in ENT. The future of American medicine in general is temered by our current political environment.

5. How do you like spending your time off?
   Playing tennis, riding motorcycles, shooting sports and reading. 

The Department of Otolaryngology held its 14th annual Ann B. and Julius N. Hicks Lectureship in Otolaryngology and Residents’ Research Day on May 11, 2019. The lectureship was established in 2006 to help support resident education in otolaryngology and continues to provide distinguished guest speaking from throughout the country.

Guest speaker Dr. Tom D. Wang, Professor and Director of Otolaryngology – Division of Facial Plastics and Reconstructive Surgery, Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery at Oregon Health Sciences University, kicked off the lecture series with a talk titled “Facelift Surgery Evolution.”

Throughout the day, PGY-3's through PGY-5's presented the results of their ongoing research activities. The first place award was presented to PGY-3 resident Dr. Lindsay S. Moore by Dr. Stites Whatley, president of The Alabama Society of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (AlaSOHN). Moore’s research was titled “Panitumumab RDye as an Optical Imaging Agent to Detect Head and Neck Cancer During Surgical Resection Using the daVinci XI System.” Dr. Do-Yeon Cho, assistant professor in the UAB Department of Otolaryngology, presented the second place award to PGY-4 resident Dr. Justin P. McCormick for his research titled “Drug-Eluting Sinus Stent in the Preclinical Model.” 

Check out this year's full photo album.

Dr. Do-Yeon Cho, Assistant Professor and Director of Otolaryngology Research, was awarded a Triological Society Career Development Award in support of his research “The Role of Mucin Degrading Anaerobes in the Pathogenesis of Chronic Rhinosinusitis with Pseudomonas”

“I am so honored to receive the Triological Society’s Career Development Award” said Cho. “This is a stepping stone to become an active fellow of the society and a leader in our field.”

To be funded in the amount of $40,000 beginning August 1, 2019, Cho’s research on the microbiome and chronic sinusitis addresses an extremely prevalent clinical problem for which well-controlled experimentation is lacking and sorely needed.

1. When did you graduate from UAB?
   June, 2005
   
   
2. What city are you located in?
   Augusta, GA
   
   
3. What are your clinical/research interests?
   Salivary gland swelling and stone removal, Sleep medicine, business of medicine
   
   
4. How did you choose to practice this area of otolaryngology?
   I first became interested in sialoendocopy as a resident when I did a case report on intraparotid stones in a pediatric patient with Dr Audie Woolley in 2004. It was just becoming available in the United States. In 2007, I pursued hands-on training in Erlangen Germany and Geneva Switzerland from the surgeons who designed the sialoendoscopes. I received sleep medicine certification in 2011 and have enjoyed the diversity that this training has brought to my practice. I completed an MBA from the University of Massachusetts at the conclusion of 2018 and this instruction has helped me engage more effectively in the midst of our busy private practice
   
   
5. What aspect of your time at UAB do you believe was most valuable as you started your career?
   The professional and personal relationships I developed with the faculty and residents at UAB are the most valuable components of my training.
   
   
6. Did you have a particular mentor while at UAB? Why were they a good mentor?
   I actually had 4 mentors during my residency. Nobody could run a smoother clinic that Dr Peters. Glen Peters taught me the importance of looking at my clinic schedule days in advance in order to reduce unwanted surprises and make the most of the patient’s visit by ensuring necessary documents were in the chart in advance. Eben Rosenthal taught me there is joy to be found in medical research and that microvascular surgery can be fun. William Carroll modeled patience in the operating room towards me and compassion in the clinic towards suffering patients and their families. Lastly, when I was a PGY-2, Mark Gibbons was my chief resident and demonstrated the importance of thoroughly examining each and every patient regardless of their chief complaint.
   
   
7. What is one of your fondest memories from UAB?
   My lasting friendship with Rob Eller, my co-resident, is my fondest memory from UAB. He consistently pushed himself to do better and this pursuit of excellence was contagious among the residents. I am grateful for how well the residents worked together during my tenure at UAB.
   
   
8. Give one piece of advice you’d like to share with the current residents or those recently graduated.
   Learn as much as you can during this time in your career. It is short and goes quickly. You’ll never be surrounded by as many smart people as you are today (unless you join the UAB faculty).
   
   
9. Hobbies/Interests: When you’re not working, how do you spend your time?
   My hobbies include dance, music, fitness, travel and family. Our family has traveled to several places in the world including Kenya, Belize, Galapagos, Sweden, France, Italy, the Grenadines, Mexico, Trinidad, England, Norway and Denmark.

1. What made you want to become a physician? 
   Honestly, the reasons I choose to be a surgeon today are slightly different to when I decided to become a physician 20 years ago. Both of my parents are physicians, and I remember seeing the influence that my mother (a family practitioner) had on her patients’ lives. Ultimately that is why I chose to become a physician, to have the opportunity to make a profound difference in peoples’ lives.
   
   
2. What is the best part of your job?
   There are a number of aspects to my job that I am grateful for. Firstly, the privilege of being able to help and support my patients and their families, through good times, and bad. Secondly, the opportunity to introduce the next generation of surgeons to this constantly evolving and growing specialty and hopefully assist them in achieving even greater accomplishments. And finally, the opportunity to work every day with a team of individuals who both support and inspire me to innovate, challenge myself, and advocate for the best treatments for our patients.
   
   
3. Who is a mentor who has had a profound influence on your life?
   My father will always be my greatest role model, a stalwart of absolute integrity, honesty and accountability. But professionally, my two greatest mentors would be Dr Bill Carroll and Dr Brad Woodworth. Ever since my fellowship at UAB they have both constantly encouraged me to ask questions, think laterally and pursue innovative solutions to clinical problems. Even from the other side of the world they have supported my desire to be better and to continually advocate for the best care available for our patients, even if I was the only one, and even when I would forget that I was in a different time zone!
   
   
4. What does the future of medicine look like in your area of interest?
   In head and neck mucosal and malignant skin disease we are evolving our understanding of cancer immunotherapy which is showing promise in the management of advanced and recurrent disease. Transoral robotics has also welcomed both a single port robot as well as the latest iteration of the Flex robotic system, one designed specifically for Head and Neck surgery. Both of these advances will really increase our ability to safely provide minimally invasive surgical options for our Head and Neck mucosal patients. And finally, in adult airway surgery, innovative research out of Belgium on tracheal allografts will hopefully soon provide real solutions for patients with extensive airway disease who have already failed standard therapy and struggle to live with tracheostomy tubes.
   
   
5. How do you like spending your time off?
   Being from Australia, I love to travel and I love the water. I particularly enjoy travelling through Europe and immersing myself in the local cultures. I’m quite fortunate to have fostered many international friendships over the years so there is always a reason to return for a visit. I recently obtained my open water scuba diving license before coming back to Alabama and managed to meet a lovely couple from Pensacola who have encouraged me to explore wreck diving in the Gulf!

The UAB Department of Otolaryngology Admin Office will be moving offices effective Monday, May 13th. Below you will find our updated contact information.

PHYSICAL ADDRESS

1155 Faculty Office Tower
510 20th Street South
Birmingham, AL. 35233
P: 205-801-7801 F: 205-801-7802

MAILING ADDRESS

FOT 1155
1720 2nd Avenue South
Birmingham, AL. 35294-3412

The Department of Otolaryngology is excited to welcome four residents to UAB this summer. Meet our new PGY-1 team:

Jessica Lee Bishop attended the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University for medical school. She received her Bachelor of Science from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Jessica was born in Birmingham, Alabama.

Sudhir Manickavel was born in Gobichettipalayam, India and attended the University of California for his undergraduate degree. He completed medical school of the University of South Florida Morsani College of Medicine in Tampa, Florida. 

Jake Patrick Morgan completed medical school at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine in Oklahoma City. Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he attended the University of Oklahoma for his undergraduate degree.

Ashwini Milind Tilak was born in Sabt Al Alayah, Saudi Arabia. Before attending medical school at the University of Viriginia in Charlottesville, she received her Bachelor of Science from the University of Miami. 

We sat down Dr. Benjamin McGrew, a neurotologist with the Department of Otolaryngology at UAB, to discuss the how earbuds can cause hearing loss and how to use them safely.

1. Is noise from headphones more dangerous because it's closer to our eardrums?
   It’s really all about volume and duration of noise exposure. No headphones or earbuds are inherently good or bad for your hearing; however, sound intensity is likely increased because of the close proximity of earbuds to your ear drums.
   
   
2. Are people experiencing hearing loss at younger ages because of the prevalence for wandering around with our headphones and earbuds in?
   I have seen children with noise-induced hearing loss because of earbud/headphone use for long periods of time at loud levels; however, exposure to harmful noise can happen at any age.
   
   
3. What's the highest decibel we should ever go to when listening on our headphones and earbuds? And the maximum length of time?
   Whether or not you’re using earbuds, attending a concert or participating in certain recreational activities, sounds at 85 decibels can lead to hearing loss if you listen to them for more than eight hours at a time. Anything above 91 decibels, your safe listening time is cut down to two hours. You can listen to sounds below 85 decibels for as long as you want without causing any nerve damage.
   
   Some smartphones are able to reach 120 decibels. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), decibels at this level are capable of causing noise-induced hearing loss in less than 15 minutes.
   
   
4. What should we look for in headphones/earbuds to protect our hearing?
   Competing sounds may cause earbud users to increase the volume on their devices to dangerous levels. Noise-isolating over ear headphones or squishy earbuds can limit the ambient noise you hear from the world around you, thus helping you resist the need to turn up the music.
   
   
5. How do we know if we've already damaged our hearing?
   Because the damage from noise exposure is usually gradual, you may not notice you’ve damaged your hearing until the symptoms become more pronounced. Sounds may become distorted or muffled and you might find yourself turning up the volume on the television or have difficulty understanding people.
   
   If you’ve ever experienced ringing in your ears after loud noise exposure, you have damaged your ears. Tinnitus from loud noise exposure often results in temporary hearing loss and resides in less than 72 hours.

The Department of Otolaryngology’s endocrine volumes have been on the rise in recent years. In 2018, the department had more than 618 thyroid and parathyroid cases. 

“Our endocrine volumes are some of the highest in the nation,” said Dr. Glenn Peters, Julius N. Hicks Professor of Otolaryngology. “Our numbers have been on the rise the last four years and I believe they will continue to trend upward.”

The department sees everything from parathyroid and thyroid cases.

In case you missed it, Dr. Erin Buczek, Dr. Benjamin Greene and Dr. Brian Hughley were featured twice on UAB MedCast, a continued medical education podcast that highlights the latest clinical and research innovations at UAB Medicine. Each podcast episode qualified for a 0.25 AMA PRA Category 1 credit. Listen to their podcasts by following the links below.

 Thyroid Disease and Thyroid Cancer

The Intricate Nature of Head and Neck Surgery

Dr. Bradford Woodworth recently traveled to João Pessoa, Paraíba, Brazil for the 48th Brazilian Congress of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery and was one of nine international guests. During his time there, Dr. Woodworth was involved in multiple roundtable discussions and gave several presentations, including:

• Acquired CFTR dysfunction in chronic rhinosinusitis

• Revision endoscopic sinus surgery: How to improve outcomes

• Evolving treatment paradigms for CSF leaks and frontal sinus trauma

During his free time, Dr. Woodworth was able to visit Ponta do Seixas, a cape on the Atlantic coast that forms the easternmost point of the American continents. The landmark defines the place where the sun first rises in the Americas.

1. When did you graduate from UAB?
   I graduated in 2012.
   
   
2. What city are you located in?
   I live in Birmingham, AL and work for ENT Associates of Alabama. Our practice covers 8 hospitals/clinics in and around Birmingham. My office is located at Baptist Walker Regional Medical Center in Jasper.
   
   
3. What are your clinical/research interests?
   General Otolaryngology. I appreciate the amazing research being done in ENT but hope I never have to write another research paper again.
   
   
4. How did you choose to practice this area of otolaryngology?
   I know everyone says the variety, but it’s true, I get bored doing the same thing.
   
   
5. What aspect of your time at UAB do you believe was most valuable as you started your career?
   The most valuable and yet worst part of residency was being on call. Making the best decisions you can on your own is the foundation of practicing medicine. After residency call, all other calls seem to pale in comparison. You can pretty much handle anything.
   
   
6. Did you have a particular mentor while at UAB? Why were they a good mentor?
   I had so many good mentors that it is hard to pick just one. The attendings poured so much into me, and because of them I have a great livelihood. I still remember a particularly bad day, when Dr. Scott Hill told me to go home, relax, have a glass of wine, and come back tomorrow to do it all again. They taught me to just keep going.
   
   
7. What is one of your fondest memories from UAB?
   My fondest memories would be the relationships I formed with my co-residents. Their humor made residency so much more enjoyable. I still keep in touch with them today.
   
   
8. Give one piece of advice you’d like to share with the current residents or those recently graduated.
   Residency is only a small part of your life, and be assured your life will be your own again.
   
   
9. Hobbies/Interests: When you’re not working, how do you spend your time?
   Haha what time? I have 2 young kids, and so most of my time is spent taking care of them. If I am lucky, I can get a run in a few times a week.