Dr. Robert McLean, ENT specialist for Memorial Regional Health, works with his patient Mark Anderson, who recently underwent a stapedotomy surgery.
ENT Specialist Assists Patients By Performing Ear & Nose Surgeries
It wasn’t easy for Mark Anderson to sing in his church’s band when he couldn’t hear anything.
Anderson, who was diagnosed with otosclerosis in 2008, works as a worship minister, and his condition caused him to eventually lose his hearing. Otosclerosis is caused by abnormal bone growth of the stirrups bone (the stapes), which is the smallest bone of the body. Anderson said he went through three different hearing aids and readjustments before even those assistive tools were no longer effective.
“I’m a worship minister, so music is what I do,” Anderson explained. “It made things really difficult, only being able to hear in one ear. My hearing progressively got worse and it was pretty rapid — it went from about a 40 percent loss of hearing to almost 100 percent in just a few short years.”
ENT Services at MRH
Learn more about the ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) services that are offered at our Craig hospital here, or call 970-826-2420 to schedule an appointment with Dr. McLean.
(For scale) Anderson’s stape bone and a prosthesis are shown on top of a penny.
How Stapedotomies Help with Hearing Loss
Anderson decided to seek help from Dr. Robert McLean, who is the Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) specialist at Memorial Regional Health. Dr. McLean told Anderson he was an ideal candidate for a stapedotomy, a procedure that aims to replace the stapes bone in the middle of the ear with a prosthetic in an effort to improve hearing. This surgery is best for candidates who have otosclerosis and significant hearing loss.
During a stapedotomy, a tiny incision is made in the ear canal and the eardrum is lifted, exposing the stapes bone. The arch part of stapes bone is removed, a tiny hole is drilled under high power magnification, and a prosthetic piston is placed. Recovery time for this type of operation is a few weeks in general, according to Dr. McLean.
“As soon as I came out of surgery, I noticed a big improvement in my hearing, and each day I notice improvements as everything heals a little more,” he said. “It just feels normal again.”
Now, Anderson is back to singing on key at his church, and he no longer has to ask those around him to repeat what they said.
“I can hear my wife and kids again,” Anderson said. “If anybody is questioning whether they’re a candidate for this kind of operation, I would suggest it.”
Anderson is just one of many patients, including children and adults, who Dr. McLean has helped the past few months. Dr. McLean has more than 15 years of experience as a head and neck surgeon, and his skill set allows him to perform a wide variety of cutting-edge, effective ENT surgeries. He is excited to bring these procedures to the area for the first time, so patients no longer have to travel hours.
Other ENT Services Offered at MRH
Robert Wagner is another patient who recently saw Dr. McLean for surgeries for his ear and nose. Earlier this year, Wagner experienced blunt force trauma to his ear, which led to hearing loss. He also had been living with breathing problems that came from a deviated septum, and as a result, had to quit his hobbies of biking, snowboarding and hiking. Wagner underwent both a tympanoplasty and septoplasty in March for his conditions.
A tympanoplasty is a surgery performed to repair ruptures or holes in the eardrum. This procedure is done to help improve hearing or to prevent frequent ear infections, and it can take anywhere between four to six weeks for a patient’s hearing to come back post-procedure. During this surgery, Dr. McLean uses a small piece of the patient’s cartilage tissue to patch the hole in the eardrum as well as endoscopes, which helps the surgical assistant see exactly what he is doing to better assist.
“I couldn’t really hear people or carry on a conversation, and I would have random popping pains as a side effect,” Wagner explained. “Now, my hearing is clearer.”
A septoplasty is a procedure that corrects a deviated septum, a condition in which the septum — the bone and cartilage that divides the two sides of the nose — is displaced to one side. During this procedure, the nasal septum is straightened and repositioned back to the middle, and soft silicone splints are inserted in the nose to support the septum for four days.
“The day after the splints were removed from my nose, everything relaxed and went back to a normal state,” Wagner said. “I’ve started hiking and biking again, and I can do exercises and have conversations without being out of breath anymore. I can even sing in the car on the way to work again every morning — that was a major win for me.”
