The OTO ObserverThe Newsletter of the Department of Otolaryngology

Medical College of Georgia

Inside This Issue

Faculty HighlightsMessage from the ChairHonors Textbook Published

Clinical HighlightsThyroid Cancer ScreeningAHNS and AAO-HNS

MeetingsFamily Choice AwardAORN Nurse of the Year

CMEGrand Rounds ScheduleContinuing Education

Symposia

Clinical SpotlightThe Bionic Otologist

ResearchResearch Grants Publications

Resident & Alumni NewsPictures from the Archives

Otology Program ExpandsWe are pleased to announce that BrianMcKinnon, M.D., M.B.A. joined the MedicalCollege of Georgia Department ofOtolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery inOctober as Assistant Professor of Otologyand Neurotology. Dr. McKinnon, formerlyChief of Otology at the Walter Reed ArmyMedical Center and Otolaryngologist to boththe White House Medical Unit and thePentagon, earned his medical degree fromBoston University and completed anotolaryngology residency at the NavalMedical Center, Portsmouth, Virginia. Thiswas followed by a fellowship in otology and neurotology at theUniversity of Virginia. Dr. McKinnon received his Masters ofBusiness Administration from Johns Hopkins University.

Dr. McKinnon has lectured both in the U.S. and internationally onthe use of implantable hearing devices and cochlear implantation inthe elderly and in the military. His clinical and research interestsinclude disorders of hearing and balance, includingcholesteatomas, acoustic schwannomas, implantable hearingdevices, and cochlear implants. He was one of the founders of thecochlear implant and implantable hearing devices program at WalterReed.

Volume 4, Issue 2 WINTER 2006

Thyroid

Screening

is a

Success

(See inside for details)

Phone Numbers and Web

Site Address

Appointments: (706) 721-4400Academic: (706) 721-6100Fax: (706) 721-0112

To learn more about recentevents in the department, visit:www.mcg.edu/otolaryngology

Dr. Brian McKinnon

Gregory Postma is senior author of the “Atlasof Transnasal Esophagoscopy”, published thisyear by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins. Co-authored by Peter Belafsky of UC-Davis andJonathan Aviv of Columbia, this is the firstcomprehensive text and illustrated atlasdescribing the use of transnasalesophagoscopy (TNE) and the management ofcommon otolaryngologic conditions whosediagnosis is facilitated with this new technology.TNE is considered by many to be the mostimportant addition to the management of refluxand swallowing disorders in the last decade.

FACULTY HIGHLIGHTS WINTER 2006

HonorsLori Burkhead was an invited speaker at theEuropean Study Group for Dysphagia andGlobus in Malmö, Sweden, the National CancerInstitute of Amsterdam, and the TorontoRehabilitation Hospital in Ontario.

Christine Gourin was appointed to the AmericanBoard of Otolaryngology Task Force for NewMaterials and was a visiting professor at theUniversity of Alabama.

Stil Kountakis served on the ProgramCommittee and was a featured speaker for theInternational Congress of Rhinology-Skull BaseSurgery in Athens. He was elected Second Vice-President of the American Rhinologic Society,

and Treasurer of the Georgia Society ofOtolaryngology.

Gregory Postma was elected Treasurer of theAmerican Broncho-Esophagological Association.He was a featured speaker at the Congress ofthe European Laryngological Society inNottingham, UK, as well as at the MedicalCollege of Wisconsin Laryngeal Surgery Course,and was a visiting professor at the University ofColorado.

David Terris was an invited speaker at the 2006Minnesota Academy of Otolaryngology annualmeeting, and visiting professor at NorthwesternUniversity.

Message from the ChairExciting times have againcome to Augusta – this timein the form of a new Dean(Dr. D. Douglas Miller fromSt. Louis University) and thefirst Director of our newCancer Center (Kapil Bhallafrom the Moffitt CancerCenter in Tampa). The

institutional growth parallels our owndepartmental expansion, and you will see that

our otology program has added a world-classrecruit in Dr. Brian McKinnon. As we witnessunprecedented increases in our clinical andsurgical volumes, our staff continues to provideoutstanding and compassionate care (see 2more examples of award-winning nursingexcellence on page 3 inside). We look forwardto another productive academic year.

David J. Terris, M.D., F.A.C.S.Porubsky Professor and Chairman

Laryngology Atlas Published

To share your news with the other alumni, please send updates to Donna Black atdonnab@mcg.edu or call 706-721-6100.

WINTER 2006 RESIDENT AND ALUMNI NEWS

Giving Opportunities

Designate Your Gift to MCG Otolaryngology

■■ Porubsky Library Fund..........................$__________

■■ Barton Otolaryngology Fund................ $__________

■■ Temporal Bone Lab Fund .................... $__________

■■ Otolaryngology Research Fund ...........$__________

■■ Area of Greatest Need......................... $__________

■■ Other: ________________________...$__________

TOTAL ...........$__________

■■ Check enclosed to MCG Foundation, Inc.

■■ CREDIT CARD please complete the following

____MC ____Visa ____AE ____Discover

Card #____________________________Exp._______

Name on card: ________________________________

Signature Required: ____________________________

Full Name ____________________________________

Address _____________________________________

City ____________________State_______ Zip______

Daytime Telephone _____________________________

Email Address _________________________________

Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent provided by

law. MCG fiscal year runs July 1 to June 30. For

more information, call 706-721-6100 or visit

www.mcg.edu/giving.

Pictures from theArchivesThe 4

thAnnual Porubsky Symposium

Drs. Edward Porubsky (left) and Bill Welch, ‘81.

The MCG Alumni Reception at theAAO-HNSF 2006 Annual Meeting

Drs. Melanie Seybt ‘09, Tammara Watts ’09, ChristineGourin, Nicolette Picerno ‘99, and Eileen Raynor ‘98.

Departmental photograph, Spring 2006

Gourin CG, Podolsky RH. Racial disparities inpatients with head and neck squamous cellcarcinoma. Laryngoscope, 116:1093-1106, 2006.

Pang KP, Dillard TA, Blanchard AR, Gourin CG,Podolsky R, Terris DJ. A comparison ofpolysomnography and the SleepStrip in thediagnosis of OSA. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg,135:265-268, 2006.

Psyrri A, Yu Z, Bamias A, Weinberger PM,Markakis S, Kowalski D, Camp RL, Rimm DL,Dimopoulos MA. Evaluation of the prognosticvalue of cellular inhibitor of apoptosis protein inepithelial ovarian cancer using automatedquantitative protein analysis. Cancer EpidemiolBiomarkers Prev, 15:1179-83, 2006.

White BJ, Adam BL, Gourin C, Wang BY.Expression of apolipoprotein A-II in head andneck squamous cell carcinoma byimmunohistochemistry. Modern Pathol, 19:212A,2006.

Rees CJ, Halum SL, Wijewickrama RC, KoufmanJA, Postma GN. Patient tolerance of in-officepulsed dye laser treatments to the upperaerodigestive tract. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg134:1023-1027, 2006.

Postma GN, Burkhead LM, Moretz WH. Doubleswallow. Ear Nose Throat J, 85:488, 2006

Postma GN. Transnasal esophagoscopy. CurrOpin Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg, 14:156-158,2006.

Weinberger P, Kountourakis P, Sasaki C, HafftyB, Camp RL, Rimm DL, Psyrri A. Oropharyngealsquamous cell cancers (OSCC) bearingtranscriptionally active human papillomavirus(HPV) display distinct protein expression profiles.J Clin Oncol, 24, (18S): 10028, 2006

Terris DJ, Chin E. Clinical implementation ofendoscopic thyroidectomy in selected patients.Laryngoscope, 116(10):1745-8, 2006.

RESEARCH WINTER 2006

Research Grants Awarded

Christine Gourin was therecipient of an American Headand Neck Society Pilot Awardand was co-PI with Bao-LingAdam on an InterdisciplinaryResearch Program Grantawarded for the proposal “Serumprotein profile analysis in

patients with head and neck squamous cellcarcinoma”.

Paul Weinberger, PGY-2,received a CORE ResidentResearch Grant awarded by theAmerican Academy ofOtolaryngology-Head & NeckSurgery for the proposal“Molecular Analysis of HumanPapillomavirus (HPV) Associated OropharyngealCarcinoma”. He also received the 2006American Head and Neck Society Fanconi Awardfor Best Overall Research Presentation for hispaper “Nuclear, cytoplasmic expression ofGalectin-3 is associated with b-catenin/wnt-pathway activation in thyroid carcinoma”.

PublicationsGourin CG, Williams HT, Seabolt WN, HerdmanAV, Howington JW, Terris DJ. Utility of PET-CT inidentification of residual nodal disease followingchemoradiation for advanced head and neckcancer. Laryngoscope, 116:705-710, 2006.

Terris DJ, Seybt MW, Gourin CG, Chin E.Ultrasonic technology facilitates minimal accessthyroid surgery. Laryngoscope, 116:851-854,2006.

Terris DJ, Seybt MW, Siupsinskiene NA, GourinCG, Chin EA. Thyroid surgery: changing patternsof practice. Laryngoscope, 116:911-915, 2006.

Porubsky EA, Gourin CG. Surgical managementof acquired tracheocele. Ear Nose Throat J,85:386-387, 2006.

AHNS and AAO-HNS MeetingsThe departmental presence at the Annual American Head and Neck Society (Chicago) and Academyof Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery (Toronto) was nothing short of stunning. In addition tocollecting three research awards (see page 6), our faculty and residents (some of whom are picturedbelow) presented a total of more than 20 papers, panels and courses at these two meetings. Thepresentation on outpatient thyroid surgery prompted an Academy press release which was picked upby several major media outlets.

The Department of Otolaryngology-Head and NeckSurgery conducted a thyroid cancer screening day inrecognition of Thyroid Cancer Awareness month. Aspart of the MCG Thyroid/Parathyroid Center’s effortsto improve early detection of thyroid malignancy, freethyroid screenings including ultrasound evaluationwere provided free of charge to the community.

WINTER 2006 CLINICAL HIGHLIGHTS

Thyroid Cancer Screening Day

STAFF HIGHLIGHTSJoy Benson, LPN was the recipient of an MCG Family Choice Award in July 2006. This Awardrecognizes health care professionals for outstanding service and dedication to practicing patient-

and family-centered care.

Debra Anderson, RN, OR Otolaryngology chargenurse, was the recipient of the Perioperative Nurseof the Year award given by the local chapter of theAssociation of periOperative Registered Nurses(AORN). She is an active member of the localchapter, serving on the Board of Directors, and isdedicated to providing safe and effective care topatients in the operating room.

Dr. Adam Becker Dr. William Moretz, III Dr. Melanie Seybt Dr. Tammara Watts

Joy Benson Debra Anderson

CME WINTER 2006

Grand Rounds2006-2007October 3 James Netterville, MD

Vanderbilt University“Medialization Laryngoplasty & Arytenoid Adduction”

November 7 Gregory T. Wolf, MD University of Michigan“Organ Preservation Strategies & theRole of Surgery in the 21

stCentury”

December 12 Robert H. Miller, MD, MBAAmerican Board of Otolaryngology“The Role of Board Certification inthe Quality Improvement Process”

January 2 David Eibling, MDUniversity of Pittsburgh“Rethinking Medical Error”

February 6 Jay F. Piccirillo, MDWashington University“Innovations in Tinnitus Research”

March 6 Wesley L. Hicks, Jr., MDRoswell Park Cancer Institute“Subsite Analysis in Oral Cavity Cancer”

April 19 C. Gary Jackson, MDThe Otology Group of Vanderbilt“Prophylatic Antibiotics in Ear Surgery”

Dr. Frank Kamer of the Laskey Clinic in Beverly Hills(right, with Dr. Achih Chen) was a featured GrandRounds speaker in 2006.

Continuing EducationSymposiaThe Department hosted a symposium onTransnasal Esophagoscopy directed byGregory Postma in conjunction with Michael E.Johns, III of Emory University at the GeorgiaSociety of Otolaryngology annual summermeeting on July 27, 2006 in Sea Island, GA.

The Southern States Rhinology course washosted by MCG under the direction of Dr. StilKountakis on October 19-21, 2006. Featuredspeakers included Drs. John DelGaudio ofEmory University, Frederick Kuhn of theGeorgia Nasal and Sinus Institute in Savannah,GA, Rodney Schlosser of MUSC, Brent Seniorof UNC, and Michael Sillers of the BirminghamNasal and Sinus Center, AL.

A Temporal Bone Dissection course directed byDrs. Alan Johnson and Brian McKinnon isplanned for March 23-24, 2007 and will featureDr. Antonio De la Cruz of the House EarInstitute in Los Angeles.Dr. Netterville (right) makes Professor Rounds as part of

visit to Augusta in October.

WINTER 2006 CLINICAL SPOTLIGHT

The Bionic Otologist

“Blindness cuts you off from things; deafnesscuts you off from people.” — Helen Keller

Hearing loss affectsapproximately one inten people in ourcountry. It is a commoncomplaint, particularlyin seniors, andrepresents a majorhealth problem.Hearing loss impactscommunication,education, recreation,and even personal safety.The resulting sense of isolation from not beingable to communicate can be profound, and thechallenge of overcoming hearing loss is oftenperceived as overwhelming. However, not onlyis hearing loss something that is the center ofactive ongoing research, but there are manyoptions available to sufferers today.

Implantable Hearing Devices, or IHDs for short,are surgically implanted devices that help thosewith hearing loss. All presently availabledevices are semi-implantable, meaning thatthere is a component that is placed into the

patient, and a component that the patientwears, coupled to the inner device eitherthrough a magnet, or to a fixture anchored inthe skull. The type of hearing loss determineswhich IHD is most likely to benefit the recipient.

Bone anchored hearing aids, or BAHAs, areused to treat conductive hearing loss (hearingloss due to the ear drum or middle ear bones

not working well), andunilateral deafness,when one side iswithout hearing andthe other side is fairlynormal. In bothcases, the BAHA isattached to a fixtureplaced into the skulljust behind the ear,and the sound is sentthrough the bone of

the skull to the functioning inner ear. Theadvantage of the BAHA is that the person doesnot need to have a hearing aid actually in theear canal, alleviating the hygiene problems ofcerumen build-up that some hearing aid usersdevelop from the use of in-canal aids.

The Vibrant Soundbridge is an IHD used inEurope that is used to treat hearing loss due toinner ear dysfunction. The device works byplacing a small oscillator (the engineers call it a“Floating Mass Transducer”) on the inner earbones, which amplifies the sound far more thancan be achieved with a conventional hearingaid. The external device couples with theimplanted device using a magnet, andcommunicates with the implant via a radiosignal. It is expected to be available in the USin the next year, and holds great promise inimproving hearing and quality of life.

“I mplantablehearing devices

are not a futurepossibility, but apresent reality, in themanagement ofhearing impairment.”

– Brian McKinnon

Minimally Invasive SurgicalManagement of Thyroid and

Parathyroid Disorders

April 12-14, 2007Augusta, Georgia

1079 10/06

Department of OtolaryngologyMedical College of Georgia1120 Fifteenth StreetAugusta, Georgia 30912-4060

The OTO Observer

Newsletter

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPermit No. 210

Augusta, Georgia

Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Faculty and Areas of Interest

David J. Terris, MD, ChairmanThyroid and Parathyroid Surgery

Stilianos Kountakis, MD, Vice ChairmanRhinology and Sinus Surgery

Mitchell B. Austin, MDPediatric Otolaryngology

Lori M. Burkhead, PhD, CCC-SLPSpeech Language Pathology

Achih H. Chen, MDFacial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery

Christine G. Gourin, MDHead and Neck Oncologic Surgery

Alan J. Johnson, MDOtology and Neurotology

Frederick N. Klippert, MDGeneral Otolaryngology

Brian J. McKinnon, MDOtology and Neurotology

Edward S. Porubsky, MDGeneral Otolaryngology

Gregory N. Postma, MDLaryngology and Swallowing Disorders

Distinguished Guest FacultyPaolo Miccoli, M.D.

University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy

R. Michael Tuttle, M.D.Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, NY, NY

Peter Angelos, M.D.University of Chicago, IL

Gerard M. Doherty, M.D.University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

Ralph P. Tufano, M.D.Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD

Program Co-ChairsChristine G. Gourin, M.D. and David J. Terris, M.D.

Medical College of Georgia

Register early. Participation in the Lab is limited.