Sara Kukuljan serves as manager of the division of clinical research for the Department of Otolaryngology. Formerly a nurse in the neonatal intensive care unit at St. Louis Children’s Hospital, she now helps guide our clinical researchers through the complex environment of human subjects research. How long have you been at Washington University? I started […]
When it comes to clear communication, not all face masks are created equal, according to a new study from the lab of Jonathan Peelle, PhD. The research study quantifies the extent to which four different types of face masks affect speech intelligibility and subjective listening effort across various levels of background noise in young and […]
The Department of Otolaryngology at Washington University in St. Louis plans to start recruiting patients this month for three important clinical trials. Clinical Utility of Residual Hearing in the Cochlear Implant Ear Principal Investigators: Amanda Ortmann, PhD, and Oliver Adunka, MD Project summary and aims: It is estimated that only five percent of qualified adult […]
Hearing loss is the third most common health condition for older adults in the US, and if untreated, may lead to social isolation, depression, cognitive decline, and fear of being home alone. Sadly, over 48% of seniors who purchase hearing aids cannot adjust to them well enough to use them daily and 31% report never […]
Sophie Gerndt, MD, is a research assistant supporting head and neck cancer research efforts in the lab of Jose Zevallos, MD. What does your work in the Zevallos lab entail? I am a physician who graduated from medical school in Juarez City, Mexico. For the past year and a half I have been working as […]
Surgeon-scientists and researchers in the Department of Otolaryngology at Washington University have just been awarded $1.7 million in grants to improve understanding and treatment of head and neck cancer. The grants will fund research to: explore the de-intensification of treatments for HPV-positive oropharyngeal cancer; identify the genomics of high risk HPV-associated and other cancers; understand […]
The 39th annual Ogura Lectureship and 34th annual Resident Research Day were held June 18, 2021. The event took a hybrid format for the first time, with resident researchers presenting their findings from the Ogura Learning Center in McMillan Hospital. Guest speaker and otolaryngology alumnus Ellis Arjmand, MD, PhD, presented the Ogura lecture remotely from […]
You are invited to participate in the Department of Otolaryngology team Heads Up for this year’s Pedal the Cause on Sept. 25 and 26. Participants—including kids—can choose to walk, run, spin, ride a bike or volunteer. While last year’s event was held virtually, there are plans for an in-person Pedal the Cause fundraising event this […]
The prevalence of single-sided or unilateral hearing loss (UHL) in school-aged children may be as high as 5%. Historically, unilateral hearing loss was thought to have little consequence because speech and language presumably developed appropriately with one normally hearing ear. According to Washington University pediatric otolaryngologist Judith Lieu, MD, however, some studies suggest that a […]
Michael Anne Gratton, PhD, and her lab are using a mouse model to explore how Alport Syndrome, a rare genetic condition, causes hearing loss. Recent findings have highlighted the mechanisms underlying Alport symptoms and identified therapeutic interventions that may prevent kidney dysunction and hearing loss in these patients. Alport Syndrome is a rare genetic disorder […]