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General ENT | Specialists and Information

General ENT | Specialists and Information

Here you will find medical experts at hospitals and private practices specializing in otolaryngology (ENT). All listed doctors are specialists in their field and have been handpicked for you according to strict guidelines. Please select a location or area of expertise. The experts look forward to hearing from you.

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General ENT - Further Information

Next to the dentist, the ENT specialist is often perceived as the doctor with the largest array of instruments in the office. However, the widespread fear is unfounded when it comes to both dentists and ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists. ENT specialists are highly skilled in using their instruments and can usually help patients very quickly with conditions and disorders affecting the throat, ears, or nose, for example.

What many people don’t know is that an ENT specialist is also often the right person to consult for sleep disorders caused by snoring or pauses in breathing during the night—a condition known as sleep apnea.

A man is snoring; his wife is covering her earsThe causes of snoring often lie in the nasopharyngeal region @ WavebreakmediaMicro /AdobeStock

What is otolaryngology?

Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) medicine is a branch of modern medicine that primarily deals with diseases, injuries, or tumors of the ears, the nose (including the sinuses), and the oral cavity (including the throat and larynx). The ENT specialist diagnoses and treats (both conservatively and surgically) existing problems and is also responsible for advising patients on preventive care, follow-up care, and rehabilitation.

All disorders of the salivary glands—such as stones, inflammation, and benign or malignant tumors—are treated. In addition, otolaryngologists (ENT specialists) treat functional disorders of the sensory organs (smell, taste, hearing, etc.) in this area and help with

  • voice and speech disorders,
  • hearing impairments, and
  • dizziness.

In addition, all facial fractures, including those of the nose, are treated both surgically and conservatively.

What conditions and disorders do ENT specialists treat?

Ear, Nose, and Throat (ENT) specialists treat, among other things, ear conditions such as otosclerosis or chronic middle ear infections, which can lead to inflammatory destruction of the ossicles (malleus, incus, stirrup), resulting in hearing loss. However, ENT specialists can also frequently help with voice and speech disorders, allergies (including hay fever), hearing problems—ranging from tinnitus to hearing loss—and the fitting of hearing aids.

Tinnitus in an Elderly ManAbout three million people in Germany suffer from tinnitus @ Photographee.eu /AdobeStock

In addition, sleep apnea and snoring, as well as numerous types of cancer (e.g., tracheal cancer, laryngeal cancerpharyngeal cancer, oral cavity cancer, and tumors at the base of the skull) fall within the scope of otolaryngology. Furthermore, all tumors in the orbit (eye socket) are typically surgically treated in collaboration with ophthalmologists. Surgery is very commonly performed for deviated nasal septums (septoplasty) or chronic inflammation of the paranasal sinuses.

All vertigo disorders originating in the vestibular system (otoneurology) are also diagnosed and treated by ENT specialists. A special area of ENT is the treatment of pediatric conditions in the head and neck region, particularly those caused by enlarged pharyngeal or palatine tonsils (pediatric ENT), as well as pediatric hearing, voice, and speech disorders (pediatric audiology). A subspecialty is the treatment of the singing and speaking voice (phoniatrics) and its management by speech-language pathologists.

A particular strength of ENT physicians is reconstructive plastic surgery of the face following accidents or tumors, as well as aesthetic reconstructive surgery in the face and neck area, such as rhinoplasty, ear pinning, dermal fillers, eyelid surgery, or facelifts.

What diagnostic procedures do ear, nose, and throat (ENT) physicians use?

The most common diagnostic procedure used by ENT specialists is endoscopy. Using an endoscopic probe inserted via a thin, rigid fiber-optic rod or a tube, the ENT specialist can examine

  • the nose,
  • the throat,
  • the larynx,
  • the pharynx,
  • the esophagus, and
  • the salivary ducts

.

In the area of the larynx, this usually allows for the early detection of a tumor or vocal cord growth.

Laryngeal function can be examined in detail either directly via endoscopy or using a strobe light (stroboscope).

The soft tissues of the neck and the paranasal sinuses, the thyroid gland, and the neck vessels are examined using ultrasound and Doppler sonography.

In the ear region, ear, nose, and throat specialists use a microscope and various audiometric measurement techniques. This makes it possible, among other things, to painlessly examine the eardrum to diagnose and treat middle ear infections, eardrum or ear canal injuries, and other conditions.

For the vestibular system, a variety of reflex tests are performed to distinguish between vertigo caused by a peripheral or central (brain) origin.

What does the range of services offered by ENT specialists look like?

ENT physicians draw on a wide range of methods to help their patients with ear, nose, and throat conditions. ENT surgery plays a major role in this. In most cases, however, these are minimally invasive procedures, i.e., surgeries performed through a small incision.

ENT specialists very often perform middle and inner ear surgery, nasal and sinus surgery, laryngeal surgery, and salivary gland surgery. In addition, tumor surgery of the neck and oral cavity is becoming increasingly important. Smoking and infections with human papillomavirus (HPV) are considered the main causes of these types of cancer. Quitting smoking and getting vaccinated against HPV early on, however, go a long way toward minimizing one’s personal risk of cancer.

The range of procedures offered by the otolaryngology clinics is further expanded by

What qualifications do ear, nose, and throat (ENT) specialists have?

In order to practice as an ENT specialist in Germany after completing medical school, a 5-year residency is required. This is essentially divided into two phases:

  • Two years of foundational training in otolaryngology.
  • Three years of specialization in otolaryngology.

Later, additional subspecialty designations in allergology, plastic surgery, voice and speech disorders, and specialized ENT surgery can be obtained to expand surgical expertise.