Almost everyone experiences issues with their ears, nose, sinuses, throat or voice from time to time. But what do you do when they keep coming back? Our otolaryngologists (ear, nose and throat doctors) specialize in treating simple, complex and chronic conditions of the sinus, ear, nose and throat – in children and adults.

Your ear, nose and throat are closely connected to three of your five senses. Even a small change to one of these senses can have a big impact on your daily life.

At HealthPartners and Park Nicollet, we’re experts in treating chronic ENT conditions. Our ear, nose and throat specialists work closely with audiologists, primary care doctors and other medical specialists to make sure you get a personalized treatment plan that meets your needs.

With many ENT clinics in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, quality ENT specialty care is always close to home.

Our ear, nose and throat doctors are experts in treating all conditions that affect the ears, nose, throat and mouth, for children and adults of all ages. Common conditions we treat include:

Taking care of our ears, nose and throat is an important part of our overall well-being. If any of these symptoms become chronic or recurrent and you’ve sought care from a primary care doctor, it’s probably time to visit an ear, nose and throat specialist.

Some common symptoms to watch for are:

• Breathing problems
• Chronic coughing, sneezing or sinus issues
• Difficulty speaking
• Difficulty swallowing
• Dizziness
• Ear pain
• Hearing loss
• Hoarseness
• Jaw pain
• Loss of smell
• Loss of taste
• Nosebleeds
• Ringing in the ears
• Snoring
• Sore throat
• Swollen tonsils
  

We provide a full range of ENT specialty care for patients of all ages. Depending on your medical situation, your ear, nose and throat specialist may recommend a specific treatment. These include:

• Ear surgery, including endoscopic ear surgery
• Evaluation and treatment of ear disorders
• Ear tube surgery
• Evaluation and treatment of nose and sinus disorders
• Facial plastic and reconstructive surgery
• Implantable hearing amplification devices, such as cochlear implants or bone anchored hearing aids (BAHAs)
• Mohs surgery and reconstruction
• Nasal and sinus surgery
• Sialendoscopy
• Sleep apnea treatment and surgery, including hypoglossal nerve stimulation (Inspire)
• Snoring treatment and surgery
• Team approach to evaluate and treat head and neck cancer
• Team approach to evaluate and treat throat and voice disorders
• Thyroid/parathyroid surgery
• Tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy
• Treatment of facial, scalp and neck infections

There are many conditions that might affect your ear, nose or throat. This means that there are also many treatments available for ear, nose and throat illnesses, including medicines, surgeries and the use of medical devices. We’ll work with you to determine the best treatment option.

Some of the more common procedures our ear, nose and throat doctors recommend to treat these conditions include:

When someone has recurrent or chronic ear infections, ear tubes (pressure equalization tubes) are used to relieve problems caused by infections and the fluid buildup that ear infections bring. They are most often used to treat chronic ear infections in children. Ear tubes are small tubes inserted into the ear drum that eventually fall out on their own. The tube prevents fluids from building up behind the eardrum.

We might recommend tonsil removal to treat snoring, sleep apnea, recurrent or chronic tonsillitis and other rare tonsil conditions, including cancer. We’ll talk to you about whether or not a tonsillectomy is your best treatment option.

If you have chronic sinus blockages or drainage issues, we might suggest surgery to clear or open up the sinus cavity so it can drain better. A surgeon will use a scope to look at your sinus cavity through your nose. Then, your surgeon will use sinus surgery instruments to open up your nasal cavity. This is best for severe or chronic sinusitis.

A hearing aid is a device worn on or in the ear that amplifies sound to make hearing easier. If your doctor believes a hearing aid is right for you, we’ll refer you to our audiology team for an evaluation and fitting.

Implantable amplifying devices are small electronic devices surgically placed inside the ear. These devices can give people who are hearing impaired the ability to hear again. These devices include cochlear implants and bone-anchored hearing aids (BAHAs). Cochlear implants are helpful for treating sensorineural hearing loss, while bone-anchored hearing aids help treat conductive hearing loss brought on by an anatomical cause.