Otolaryngology-Head And Neck Surgery

The Vanderbilt Biophotonics Center, led by Professor Anita Mahadevan-Jansen, developed a device called the PTeye that can help surgeons see patients' parathyroid glands—which have unpredictable locations—better during neck surgery by making the tissue glow! A large, multicenter clinical trial has provided evidence of its effectiveness, which the team hopes will improve the accuracy of endocrine neck surgery and improve patient outcomes. Clinical implementation of the device was pioneered by Dr. Carmen Solórzano, director of Vanderbilt Endocrine Surgery at VUMC. Read More

The rigidity of the extracellular matrix that surrounds cells impacts the contractile and invasive properties of head and neck cancer cells. Read More

A rare tumor that causes facial weakness was found masquerading as a more common benign facial tumor. Read More

A patient’s mucus may predict the type of his or her chronic sinusitis, which could help doctors determine whether surgery or medical treatments can produce the best outcomes, according to a recently published Vanderbilt study. Read More

Patients are coming to the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center from around the globe, discovering the center’s world-class services through social media. One such person is Sophia Pafitis, who traveled to Vanderbilt last year from the Australian island of Tasmania. Read More

George Wanna, M.D., associate professor of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, has been named editor-in-chief of the journal Otolaryngology Case Reports, joining other colleagues at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center who edit journals. Read More

Of every 100 people in the United States, at least three men or women will be diagnosed with head and neck cancer in their lifetimes. These cancers can occur in the nasal cavity, sinuses, throat, lips, mouth, thyroid, salivary glands or the voice box (larynx). Read More