Otolaryngology is the branch of medicine and surgery that specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of ear, nose, throat, and head and neck disorders. The complete name of the specialty is otolaryngology–head and neck surgery. Practitioners are called otolaryngologists–head and neck surgeons.
An Otolaryngologist is known by many other names including: ear nose throat doctor, ear nose & throat physician, ENT specialist, doctor ears nose and throat, and surgeon ear nose throat.
Otolaryngologists are medical doctors who are required in the United States to complete 5 years of surgical residency training. The medical disorders treated by an Otolaryngologist include: chronic ear infection, sinusitis, snoring and sleep apnea, hearing loss, allergies and hay fever, swallowing disorders, nosebleeds, hoarseness, dizziness, and head and neck cancer. Otolaryngologists are also trained in facial plastic surgery.
So, if you want to impress friends and family after a visit to Dr. O’Halloran, don’t just say you visited an ear, nose and throat doctor; drop a 7-syllable word on them and say you visited a Otolaryngologist.