Overview
An otolaryngologic problem affects the ears, nose or throat — sometimes called ENT. These conditions can be chronic problems that affect your daily life over a long period of time. Perhaps your symptoms prevent you from enjoying everyday activities, make you miss school or work or interrupt your sleep. They also may indicate a health issue that needs medical attention.
If you have an otolaryngology concern, Cleveland Clinic in Florida has a team of experts who can help. We offer advanced testing on-site to diagnose the problem quickly and accurately. Then we design a comprehensive treatment plan, selecting from a wide range of medical, surgical and therapeutic options.
Why Choose Cleveland Clinic in Florida for Otolaryngology?
- Recognized expertise: Our otolaryngologists have expertise in all conditions of the ear, nose and throat, from simple to complex. They are recognized leaders in their field.
- Specialized knowledge: Our team includes several subspecialists who have deep understanding of particular conditions and areas of anatomy. For example, we have in-house experts in otology (hearing), voice, head and neck oncology (cancer), rhinology (nose) and sinus, and speech-language pathology (speech and swallowing).
- Collaborative care: When you need additional types of treatment, your otolaryngologist collaborates with other specialists at Cleveland Clinic in Florida. For example, your team may include specialized surgeons, endocrinologists, allergists or oncologists. We can consult our neurosurgery colleagues for advanced procedures and microsurgery in particularly complex cases.
- Convenient care: You have access to expert diagnosis and comprehensive treatment close to home. This speeds up diagnosis so you can start treatment and achieve relief sooner. And it reduces the number of appointments you have to attend.
- Minimally invasive options: We can manage many otolaryngology conditions without surgical intervention. But we have many minimally invasive options when we do recommend surgery. This approach lessens pain and expedites recovery. Most people go home the same day as their procedure or have a short hospital stay.
What Is an Otolaryngologist?
An otolaryngologist is a surgeon who treats conditions affecting your ears, nose, throat, neck and sinuses. They are trained to perform certain surgical procedures.
Several of our otolaryngologists are trained in subspecialties, such as rhinology (nose and sinus) and laryngology (voice). These subspecialists have even more detailed skills and experience with specific conditions.
Who Can Otolaryngologists Help?
We help patients with a variety of symptoms, including:
- Abnormal taste or smell.
- Chronic sore throat or chronic cough.
- Dizziness or vertigo.
- Ear pain or recurring ear infections.
- Lump on your face or neck.
- Runny nose, sinus pressure or nasal congestion that won’t go away.
- Trouble swallowing (dysphagia).
- Voice changes or hoarseness.
We treat otolaryngology conditions, including:
- Laryngitis and issues with the professional voice.
- Nasal obstruction.
- Sinusitis and nasal allergies.
- Thyroid disease.
- Tonsilitis.
Otolaryngology Diagnosis
At Cleveland Clinic in Florida, diagnosing an otolaryngology condition starts with listening to your story. We ensure we understand your symptoms, how they affect your life and what you want to achieve with treatment. We also may conduct a brief physical exam.
Next, we usually conduct one or more tests on-site during your clinic visit. This helps you get the fastest possible results, diagnosis and treatment initiation. We have immediate access to high-resolution imaging technology if you need more advanced testing. We use tests to map the complex head and neck anatomy and identify any problems.
Our on-site testing capabilities include:
- Fiberoptic nasal endoscopy: Nasal endoscopy threads a thin tube through your nose. A light and camera on the end allow us to examine your nasal and sinus passages. We use flexible or rigid nasal endoscopy, depending on your needs.
- Laryngoscopy: We use a telescopic tube with a light and camera at the end to look into your larynx (voice box) during laryngoscopy. We can use a flexible tube or a more rigid version, depending on your needs.
- Sialendoscopy: This procedure examines the major salivary glands for stones, strictures, inflammation and other problems.
- Sleep study: A sleep study (polysomnograpy) tracks multiple body systems while you sleep, such as your brain, heart and breathing.
- Stroboscopy: During a laryngoscopy, we also use a special strobe light to assess the vibrations in your vocal cords.
- Ultrasound: In-office ultrasound imaging test allows us to see any masses or obstructions. We get clear pictures of the structures in your head and neck, such as the thyroid.
- Biopsy: We may conduct a biopsy during one of the procedures above if we suspect abnormal tissue. We take a tiny sample of tissue to examine under a microscope. We use ultrasound to guide biopsy around the complex and delicate structures of your head and neck.
Otolaryngology Treatment
We make individualized treatment recommendations based on your exam and test results. This may include medications, therapy, simple procedures or surgery. We make sure you understand your condition, options and likely outcomes.
Many otolaryngology surgical procedures are minimally invasive. We can often go through your mouth or nose or a small incision rather than a large incision. Most people go home the same day or have a short hospital stay.
We offer many treatment options for the entire range of otolaryngology issues, including:
- Cauterization, which uses heat to seal tissue and stop frequent nose bleeds.
- Implantation of a hypoglossal nerve stimulator to reduce the occurrence of obstructive sleep apnea.
- Posterior nasal nerve ablation, for managing chronic postnasal drip and runny nose.
- Resection of lesions, tumors, cysts and stones.
- Surgical removal of tonsils (tonsillectomy), adenoids (adenoidectomy), your parotic gland (parotidectomy) or your thyroid gland.
- Turbinoplasty to change the position of turbinates (small bones inside your nose) or radiofrequency ablation to reduce their size.
- Tympanostomy to place ear tubes that drain fluid.
