A rich tradition of comprehensive training, innovation and care.

The faculty and staff of the Department of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine are committed to training the future leaders of our specialties, investigating causes, developing innovative treatments and promoting the health of our patients.

About Us

What We Do

Education

We offer diverse and comprehensive educational experiences for residents and fellows, including robust research training opportunities and a world-class teaching faculty.

EXPLORE OUR PROGRAMS

Research

Our team knows that research plays a critical role in the advancement of care. Learn more about the work being done in our labs.

BROWSE OUR ONGOING PROJECTS

Patient Care

Our team includes specialists in hearing, balance, smell, taste, voice, speech, language, cancers of the head and neck and reconstructive and cosmetic plastic surgery.

SEE INFORMATION FOR PATIENTS

Faculty Spotlight

See All Faculty

Robert C Kern

Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and Medicine (Allergy and Immunology)

Sinus problems, trans nasal resection of skull base tumors, snoring and sleep apnea, Taste and smell disorders

James W Schroeder, Jr.

Professor of Otolaryngology (Pediatric Otolaryngology) and Medical Education

My primary interest is pediatric airway obstruction and pediatric upper airway reconstruction specifically laryngomalacia and its surgical treatment - supraglottoplasty. I am also interested in the Diagnosis and Medical and Surgical Treatment of Pediatric Dysphagia. Specifically, I am interested in how congenital and acquired airway lesions affect a child’s ability to eat and swallow. My interest also include the medical and surgical treatment of pediatric obstructive sleep apnea and sinusitis.

Bruce K Tan

Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and Medicine (Allergy and Immunology)

Sinusitis, chronic sinusitis, nasal polyps, nasal tumors, smell and taste disturbances, minimally invasive approaches to the skull base, inflammation, mechanisms of smell loss from inflammation, therapeutics and diagnostic approaches for sinus disease

Douglas M Sidle

Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery

Dr. Sidle is the only double board certified Facial Plastic Surgeon at Northwestern. He specializes in plastic and reconstructive surgery of the face and neck. He has a particular interest in rhinoplasty, cosmetic facial surgery, and injectable fillers and Botox. He also performs complex skin cancer reconstructions.

Kevin C Welch

Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery

Chronic sinusitis, sinus cancer, sinus tumors, skull base surgery, endoscopic sinus surgery, revision endoscopic sinus surgery, endoscopic skull base surgery, esthesioneuroblastoma, inverted papilloma, cerebrospinal fluid rhinorrhea, CSF leak

Jing Zheng

Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery

The long-term goal of my lab is to identify and investigate molecules that play important roles in mammalian hearing, thus to enrich our understanding of cochlear physiology, and to further develop a better strategy to prevent hearing loss. Outer hair cells (OHCs) are essential for providing high sensitivity and frequency selectivity of hearing. They are also the most vulnerable cells in the inner ear and are involved in most sensorineural hearing loss that affects the hearing of millions of people. It is known that OHC death is strongly connected with the generation of reactive oxygen species...

Claus-Peter Richter

Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery and McCormick School of Engineering

Development of cochlear implants including novel devices based on neural infrared stimulation, use of laser in clinical settings, micromechanics of the cochlea, imaging

Jonathan B Ida

Associate Professor of Otolaryngology (Pediatric Otolaryngology)

Pediatric airway evaluation and management, Subglottic Stenosis, Airway reconstruction, Pediatric voice disorders and surgery, Pediatric stroboscopy, Laryngology, Bronchoesophagology, Pediatric hoarseness, Vocal cord paralysis, Respiratory papillomatosis, Vocal cord nodules.

Kathleen R Billings

Professor of Otolaryngology (Pediatric Otolaryngology)

My primary clinical interests include the following: acute and chronic otitis media, hearing loss, tympanic perforations, cholesteatoma, ENT manifestations of craniofacial abnormalities or syndromes, including Down and Turner’s syndromes, adenotonsillar diseases including obstructive sleep apnea and recurrent tonsillitis.

David B Conley

Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery

Sinus problems, chronic sinusitis, sinonasal polyps. Sinus and nasal skull base tumors. Computerized image guided sinus and skull base surgery. Intraoperative CT scanning. Research: Better diagnosis and treatment of chronic sinusitis. Research: Immunologic basis of chronic sinusitis. Research: Clinical and research trials - goal: improved diagnosis and treatment of chronic sinusits. General otolaryngology.