Brandon Isaacson, M.D., is a Professor in the <u>Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery</u> at UT Southwestern Medical Center and serves as Co-Director of UT Southwestern's Comprehensive Skull Base Program.

Dr. Isaacson earned his medical degree at the Medical College of Georgia, where he served as President of the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. He completed an otolaryngology residency at the University of Michigan, as well as a fellowship at Houston's Baylor College of Medicine, where he received advanced training in otology, neurotology, and skull base surgery. He also holds a B.S. in chemistry (summa cum laude) from Georgia's Armstrong State University.

Dr. Isaacson is board certified in otolaryngology – head and neck surgery and neurotology. He is a Fellow of the American Neurotology Society, the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, and the American College of Surgeons. In 2018, he was also inducted as a Fellow of the Triological Society.

He has authored over 130 scientific articles, contributed to more than 30 book chapters, and delivered numerous international, national, and regional presentations, lectures, and professional courses. He serves as a reviewer for a number of academic journals as well as on the editorial board of Otology & Neurotology. 

Dr. Isaacson has been awarded the UT Southwestern Chief Resident Appreciation Award for excellence in resident education and advocacy in 2008, 2012, and 2017. From the American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery Foundation, he received the Honor Award in 2010, and the Distinguished Service Award in 2012 . Dr. Isaacson also serves as an Senior Examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology.

Seiji Kakehata, M.D., Ph.D. is best known for his work in pioneering endoscopic ear surgery in his home country of Japan and around the world. He served as Professor and Chair of the Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at Yamagata University Faculty of Medicine until March of 2023 after which he became Professor Emeritus. In May of 2023, he opened the Endoscopic Ear Surgery Center in the Ota General Hospital in Kawasaki Japan to make TEES more accessible to the wider public. He is also the immediate past Chair of Board of Directors, Japan Otological Society. He is a director of the Japanese Society of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. In addition, he is a founding board member of the International Working Group on Endoscopic Ear Surgery (IWGEES) and its immediate past president as well as the president of the Pan-Asia Working Group on Endoscopic Ear Surgery (PAWGEES).

Dr. Kakehata’s clinical interests include minimally invasive endoscopic ear surgery, conductive and sensorineural hearing loss, and facial nerve palsy. Dr. Kakehata’s research has focused on cochlear hair cell physiology and hearing regeneration. His funded research includes the study of outer hair cell motility, effects of cholesterol alterations on outer hair cells, regeneration of the facial nerve, and regeneration of auditory nerve fiber growth and synapse formation after ear injury.

Dr. Kakehata hosted the 4th World Congress on Endoscopic Ear Surgery in 2022 and is the president-elect of the 36th Politzer Society Meeting to be held in 2028 in Kyoto. He organized and conducted the first endoscopic ear surgery courses in Asia and has continued to host an annual hands-on course since 2012. He has delivered numerous presentations at regional and national meetings in Japan, as well as at international conferences and courses, particularly in the field of endoscopic ear surgery.