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October 27, 2003

Richard T. Miyamoto, M.D., Elected to Institute of Medicine Membership

From: AScribe - Oct 27, 2003

INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 27 (AScribe Newswire) -- Richard T. Miyamoto, M.D., chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, has been elected a member in the prestigious Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Miyamoto, the Arilla Spence DeVault Professor, is internationally known for his pioneering work and research of cochlear implants and treatment of profound deafness among adults and children. The department he leads is one the major centers in the country to receive National Institutes of Health funding to research pediatric cochlear implantation.

On the faculty with the IU School of Medicine since 1978, Dr. Miyamoto was elected to NAS membership with other nominees October 1. NAS is considered one of the highest honors that can be accorded to a U.S. medical scientist or engineer. It recognizes members' distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.

Miyamoto performed Indiana's first cochlear implant procedure in 1979 at the Indiana University Hospital, and in 1995, he and his team at Riley Hospital for Children implanted a device in 16-month-old boy, the youngest ever to receive an implant at that time. With clear evidence of the advantages of early implantation, Miyamoto and his colleagues have recently implanted the device in a 6-month-old congenitally deaf infant who by age 18 months has achieved age appropriate speech and language skills. More than 850 patients have received implants at the IU Medical Center.

A 1970 graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School, Miyamoto has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health since 1987. With grants in excess of $12 million, Dr. Miyamoto and his research team are studying how cochlear implants help deaf children learn language and speech skills.

He has received many awards and recognitions over the years, including the IU School of Medicine's Outstanding Professor in Clinical Sciences on 3 occasions and a commendation from the Indiana Speech Language Hearing Association. He has been awarded an honorary doctor of engineering by the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. He was elected to the Collegium Otorhinolaryngologicum Amitae Sacrum and is the current president of the Indiana chapter of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. He has been honored in Marquis' Who's Who in America, Who's Who in the World, International Directory of Distinguished Leadership, and International Who's Who of Intellectuals (Cambridge, England).

A past president of the American Neurotology Society and the Association for Research in Otolaryngology, Miyamoto is a member of numerous other professional societies including the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, the American Otological Society, the Triological Society, the American College of Surgeons, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Royal Society of Medicine (England). He is director on the American Board of Otolaryngology and serves on the Advisory Council of the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Miyamoto also is associate editor for Otolaryngology-Head and Neck and the Journal of the Association for Research in Otolaryngolgy.

Dr. Miyamoto completed his residency at the IU School of Medicine. He has an extensive classroom teaching schedule as well as clinical supervision duties. He has been listed in America's Top Doctors, a recognized source for finding the nation's top specialists.

The Institute of Medicine was chartered in 1970 as a component of the National Academy of Sciences. The Institute provides a public service by working outside the framework of government to ensure scientifically informed analysis and independent guidance.

For more information about cochlear implants and the IU Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, go to www.iupui.edu/ percent7Eiuoto. More information about the Institute of Medicine can be found at www.iom.edu.

© 2003 AScribe