Pediatric otolaryngology is the subspecialty of otolaryngology, the medicine and surgery of the ear, nose, and throat, that focuses on diagnosing and treating conditions of the head and neck in infants, children, and adolescents. Because children's anatomy, physiology, and developmental needs differ from those of ad…
Pediatric otolaryngology is the subspecialty of otolaryngology, the medicine and surgery of the ear, nose, and throat, that focuses on diagnosing and treating conditions of the head and neck in infants, children, and adolescents. Because children's anatomy, physiology, and developmental needs differ from those of adults, pediatric otolaryngologists are trained to manage problems specific to young patients, often working within multidisciplinary teams. Common conditions in this field include recurrent ear infections and middle-ear fluid, hearing loss, tonsil and adenoid disorders, obstructive sleep-disordered breathing, airway abnormalities, sinus and nasal conditions, congenital anomalies of the head and neck, and disorders affecting speech, swallowing, and breathing. Care ranges from medical management and monitoring to surgical procedures such as the placement of ear tubes, tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy, and airway and reconstructive surgery, with an emphasis on preserving normal growth and development. Diagnostic evaluation may incorporate imaging and specialized hearing and airway assessments. Research relevant to this field, within the scope of Otolaryngology Advances, includes work on the use of diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging in the diagnosis of cholesteatoma, an ear condition that can affect children and that illustrates the diagnostic challenges addressed in ear, nose, and throat care. This page gathers peer-reviewed, open-access material relevant to pediatric otolaryngology and disorders of the ear, nose, and throat.
1 peer-reviewed article, ranked by relevance. Each links to its DOI.