Complex Pediatric Otolaryngology is a medical specialty focused on the care of children with conditions affecting the ears, nose, and throat. It includes both medical and surgical treatment for patients from birth through age 17. Specialists in this field have advanced training to address the unique developmental needs of children and often collaborate with allergists, audiologists, and speech therapists to provide coordinated care for complex conditions.
Complex Pediatric Otolaryngology
A pediatric otolaryngology clinic specializes in diagnosing and treating ear, nose, and throat conditions in children, from infants to teenagers. Providers trained in complex pediatric otolaryngology address the unique needs of children, including developmental differences and communication considerations.
What is a pediatric otolaryngologist?
Common Conditions
Our specialists are trained, experienced and equipped to diagnose and treat a wide variety of ear, nose and throat-related conditions in children and adolescents. More specifically, pediatric otolaryngologist conditions we treat at El Paso Children's Hospital include:
Complex ear, nose, and throat conditions in children
The Complex Pediatric Otolaryngology Clinic at El Paso Children’s Hospital is dedicated to keeping children’s ears healthy and protected, so they can experience the sounds of West Texas clearly. We treat a variety of ear-related conditions, including ear infections, tonsillitis, adenoid disorders, and allergies.
Management of complex conditions:
Pediatric otolaryngologists also handle more complicated issues like airway obstruction, hearing loss, and congenital abnormalities of the head and neck.
Surgical procedure's
They perform surgeries such as tonsillectomies, adenoidectomies, and ear tube placements, often in collaboration with other pediatric specialists.
Contact a Pediatric Otolaryngology Specialist
Your child’s ears, nose, and throat play an important role in how they experience the world—from listening in class and singing their favorite song to laughing with friends and enjoying everyday moments. When concerns affect hearing, breathing, swallowing, voice, or the airway, it can bring stress and uncertainty for families.
You can trust the Complex Pediatric Otolaryngology specialists at El Paso Children’s Hospital to provide expert, compassionate care and guide your family every step of the way.
Multispecialty Center
5400 Alameda AvenueEl Paso, Texas 79905
Phone
915-242-8402
Monday - Friday
8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Medical Staff
Jonathan Chiao, MD
Pediatric Otolaryngologist
Amanda Chiao, AuD, PhD, CCC-A
Pediatric Hearing & Vestibular Audiologist, Texas Tech Physicians of El Paso
Manuel A. Vicente, AuD, CCC-A
Pediatric Audiologist
Services Provided
Conditions Treated
Allergic reactions occur when the body's immune system detects a substance it sees as harmful to the body and attacks it. If the allergen is inhaled, that can cause a variety of issues in the nose, including inflammation of the sinuses and sinus congestion. Common allergens that cause sinus congestion in children include pet dander, pollen and dust.
Located deep inside the inner ear, the fluid-filled vestibular system plays a crucial role in helping us maintain our balance, which is the ability to walk, run or stand upright without falling over. Ear-related issues like ear infections sometimes interfere with this system, causing balance problems in kids.
This is an respiratory issue that occurs when an infection leads to swelling in a child's voice box (larynx), bronchial tubes (the tubes that fork away from the windpipe to the lungs) and windpipe (trachea). The infection causes these structures to swell and narrow, which can cause breathing difficulties, wheezing when breathing (stridor) and a characteristic "barking" cough.
The nasal septum is the wall between the left and right nasal passages, which are the spaces inside the nose. In people with a deviated septum, this wall is shifted too far to one side or the other. That can cause a range of issues, including obstruction of one side of the nose, difficulty breathing, nasal dryness, snoring, nosebleeds, face pain and other problems.
Also called otalgia or just ear pain, an earache is long-lasting pain or discomfort in any part of a child's ear. Earaches can be caused by a variety of issues, including changes in air pressure while traveling, ear infections, swimmer's ear, foreign objects in the ear canal or being struck on the ear.
Also called otitis media, these are infections of the middle ear, which is the space behind a child's eardrum that houses and protects the small bones that help us to hear sound.
Also called cerumen, ear wax is a sticky goo produced by special glands in the outer ear canal. It has several important functions, including trapping dust and germs, preventing infections and keeping the ear canal lubricated. But if too much earwax builds up, it can block the ear canal, causing muffled hearing, ear pain, pressure and other issues.
The eustachian tubes are two thin tubes that connect the back of the throat to the middle ear, helping balance air pressure between the front and back side of the eardrum. In younger children, these tubes are short and narrow, with less of a slope than they have in teens and adults. If one or both of the eustachian tubes become blocked, that can contribute to recurring, painful ear infections.
Facial pain and pressure in children can be caused by a variety of issues, including sinus infections, teething or dental pain, colds and more. El Paso Children's Hospital's Pediatric ENTs are skilled at finding solutions for childrens' ear, nose and throat pain.
From popsicle sticks to pencils, French fries to English peas, if it can fit in the ear, a child, adolescent or teenager has probably put it in there at some point. The Pediatric ENT Team at El Paso Children's Hospital are experts at safely removing foreign objects from the ears, as well as evaluating and treating any damage these intrusions may have caused.
Halitosis is the medical term for bad breath. In kids, bad breath is often caused by poor or infrequent brushing and flossing, but may also be due to dry mouth, eating smelly foods like onions and garlic, tonsil stones, infections, dehydration and more.
Hearing loss in one or both ears can be a result of congenital (present at birth) issues or can develop later in childhood. Different types of hearing loss diagnosed in children include conductive hearing loss, which involves something preventing sound from reaching the inner ear, and sensorineural hearing loss, which is usually caused by damage to the inner ear or the auditory nerve that transmits impulses from the ear to the brain.
Also called rhinitis or a "runny nose," nasal congestion is characterized by a child having swelling and mucus buildup in the nose and sinuses. Nasal congestion can be caused by a variety of issues, including colds, flu, allergies and more.
Pediatric obstructive sleep apnea is a condition that can block a child's airway while they're sleeping, causing them to have difficulty breathing or stop breathing altogether momentarily. In children who are untreated, the issue can occur several times a night. While obesity is a major cause of sleep apnea in older teens and adults, pediatric sleep apnea is often due to larger-than-usual tonsils and adenoids, which are fleshy structures at the back of the throat. Symptoms of pediatric sleep apnea include snoring, gasping for air while sleeping or bedwetting that starts suddenly.
Also called epistaxis, nosebleeds are common in children. They're caused by a ruptured blood vessel in the lining of the nose (the nasal mucosa). Nosebleeds usually aren't harmful. However, if your child has recurring nosebleeds, there may be an issue that needs to be evaluated by a Pediatric ENT. Common causes of recurring nosebleeds in children include dry air, picking the nose too vigorously, sinus infections and other issues.
Also called a perforated eardrum, this condition involves a tear or hole in the eardrum, which is the thin membrane between the outer ear canal and the middle ear. The eardrum is a crucial part of the system that turns sound into signals the brain can understand. A hole in the eardrum can cause pain and hearing loss. Causes of a ruptured eardrums in children include objects poked into the ear, ear infections, attempts to clean a child's ears with cotton swabs, being slapped forcefully in the ear, exposure to very loud noises and other issues.
Also called sinusitis, sinus infections are infections of the moist membranes that line the sinuses, which are air-filled pockets in the skull behind the forehead and cheeks. During a sinus infection, the sinuses can become blocked by swelling and fill with mucus, leading to pressure, facial pain and further infection. Viruses are the most common cause of sinus infections, but they're sometimes caused by bacteria as well.
Smell and taste disorders are issues that affect the way a child smells or tastes things. These senses are closely linked, with anything that affects one sense often affecting the other. Common issues include losing the ability to smell (anosmia) or losing the sense of taste (ageusia). These issues can be due to a variety of causes, including sinus infections, allergies or flu.
Also called streptococcal pharyngitis, strep throat is caused by an infection of the tonsils and throat by a bacteria known as Group A Streptococcus. The Group A Strep bacteria is very contagious, and can be spread through coughing or sneezing. Symptoms of strep throat include swollen, red tonsils, fever, swollen lymph nodes in the neck, throat pain, difficulty swallowing and other issues.
Also called otitis externa, this is a red, painful infection in the outer ear canal, which is the tube that carries sound from a child's ear to the eardrum. The condition is called "swimmer's ear," because it's often caused by water in the outer ear canal after bathing or swimming. That creates a warm, moist environment where infection-causing bacteria can grow.
This is an infection of the tonsils, usually caused by a virus or bacterial infection. Part of the immune system, the tonsils are two small, fleshy lumps at the back of the throat, with one on each side. Tonsillitis can make these structures and the back of the throat red, swollen and sore, which can make it hard or painful to swallow.
The vocal cords are two rubbery bands inside the voice box (the larynx) in the throat. When air is moved across the vocal cords, these structures vibrate and make sound, allowing us to do all the incredible things people can do with the human voice. The ENT Program at El Paso Children's Hospital treats a variety of voice-related issues in children and teens, from traumatic vocal cord injuries to recurring hoarseness.
Pediatric otolaryngologists work closely with audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and other pediatric specialists to provide comprehensive care.
They are trained to consider the developmental stage and specific needs of children when providing care.