Department of Otolaryngology at University Hospital Heidelberg

About The Hospital Departments Accommodation

University Hospital Heidelberg

Heidelberg, Germany

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Head of the Department

Prof. Dr. Peter K. Plinkert

Department of Otolaryngology

Description Curriculum vitae

Department of Otolaryngology at University Hospital Heidelberg provides care for patients with ear, nose, and throat diseases as well as head and neck tumors. The department directs great focus towards diagnostics as it has a specialized diagnostic unit with the latest microscopes, endoscopes, and computerized tomographic systems. The medical staff not only treats but also performs procedures on both an inpatient and outpatient basis. Over 4,200 inpatients are treated and 1,500 procedures are performed every in the inpatient operating rooms and the outpatient surgery unit.
Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Med. Peter K. Plinkert, the department also has a specialized center, the Center of Cochlear Implantation, running under it. The center offers the full range of care for patients with hearing and balance disorders, from early detection and diagnosis to treatment, rehabilitation, and psychological support.

The Department of Otolaryngology at University Hospital Heidelberg is specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of:

Middle ear infection
Cholesteatoma
Otosclerosis
Dizziness
Meniere’s disease
Tinnitus
Middle ear effusion
Malignant tumors of the head and neck
Chronic sinusitis
Facial nerve paralysis
Reinke’s edema
Vocal cord polyps
Vocal cord cysts
Leukoplakia
Laryngeal stenosis
Tracheal stenosis
Speech disorders
Voice disorders

Education

1978 - 1985 Medical School at the University of Goettingen.
1985 State Medical Examination in Human Medicine and admission to medical practice.
1981 - 1985 Doctoral thesis, Department of Chemistry and Neurotoxicology, University of Goettingen.

Training and Qualifications

1985 - 1986 Residency at the Department of General Surgery, Krankenhaus der Borromäerinnen Trier, University Mainz.
1986 - 1990 Residency at the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Wuerzburg (Prof. Dr. J. Helms).

Professional Career

1988 Consultant Surgeon at the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Tuebingen (Prof. Dr. H. P. Zenner).
1989 Postdoctoral Fellowship of the German Research Foundation (DFG) at the Institute for Neurochemistry and Neurotoxicology, University Stockholm (Prof. Dr. E. Heilbronn): Innervation of cochlear hair cells.
1992 Venia Legendi in Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Tuebingen (Assistant Professorship).
1992 Additional qualification in Plastic Surgery.
1993 Additional qualification in Allergology.
1994 - 2000 Vice Director at the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Eberhard-Karls University Tuebingen.
1996 Additional qualification in Special Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery.
1998 Visiting Professor at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas, Houston.
2000 Appointed as the Head of the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, University Greifswald (declined).
2000 - 2004 Head of the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Saarland University.
2001 - 2004 Member of the Board of Directors of the Cancer Center Saarland.
2002 - 2004 Vice Dean of the Medical Faculty, Saarland University.
Since October 2004, Head of the Department of Adult and Pediatric Otolaryngology, University Hospital Heidelberg.
2005 Member of the Board of Directors of Kopfklinik, University Hospital Heidelberg.
2007 Granting of an Honorary Doctorate (Honoris causa) Universitas Medicinae et Scientiae Pharmaceutical "Victor Babes", Timisiensis, Timisoara Rumania.
2009 Re-elected as a Member of the Board of Directors of Kopfklinik, University Hospital Heidelberg.
Interdisciplinary structures established during the chairmanship at the Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery at the Saarland University (2000 - 2004) Establishment of a general screening program for an SNHL in all newborns in the Saarland area.
Interdisciplinary Center for Skull Base Surgery at the Saarland University (Speaker).
Rehabilitation Center for Children with Cochlear Implants in Saarland.

Awards and Grants

1994 Anton von Töltsch Prize of the German Society for Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, For Merits in the Scientific Studies in Inner Ear Biology.
1889 Grant from the German Research Foundation (DFG) at the Institute for Neurochemistry and Neurotoxicology, University Stockholm.
1993 Grant from DAAD for being a Visiting Lecturer at Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bangalore, India (Prof. Dr. Ashok Shenoy) and for the implementation of modern reconstructive surgical procedures in head and neck cancer.

Memberships

German Society for Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery.
German Society for Base Skull Surgery.
German Society for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
Association for Research in Otolaryngology (ARO), USA.
Association for Endoscopy in the German Society for Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery (Member of the Board of Directors).
President of the Association for German-speaking Audiologists and Neuro-Otologists (ADANO).
Member of Collegium Oto-Rhino-Laryngologicum Amicitae Sacrum (CORLAS).

Current Scientific Focuses