Dr. Lippy’s online library

There will be two versions of the online library: one for physicians and another for patients.

By WILLIAM K. ALCORN

VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

WARREN — Dr. William H. Lippy, a world-renowned expert on hearing restoration, is putting the knowledge gained through 50 years of practice as an otologist into an online video library.

The library will be free for physicians and patients around the world to use.

The videos will consist of dialogue about various techniques and topics between Dr. Lippy, founder of the Lippy Group for Ear, Nose and Throat in Warren, and one of his colleagues, Dr. Leonard Berenholz.

There will be two versions: One, very technical for physicians; and another for patients, said Dr. Lippy.

The basis for the online video library will be many of the 55 peer review articles published in professional journals by the Lippy Group, with Dr. Lippy as the major contributor; six book chapters that Dr. Lippy has written, and his experience in the field.

Dr. Lippy has performed 17,000 stapedectomies, including 2,000 revisions, or fixes, of the surgery that corrects otosclerosis, a progressive disease caused by a problem with the third little bone in the ear, called the stapes or stirrup bone.

The operation, done under local anesthesia through an operating microscope under high magnification, removes the stapes bone and replaces it with a tissue graft and a titanium prosthesis, Dr. Lippy said.

How library came about

The online library project grew out of a request by an editor of The Journal of Ear, Nose and Throat for Dr. Lippy to write a series of articles for the publication, summarizing his work.

“Frankly, I am getting older and I think they are afraid my knowledge will die with me,” he said, smiling.

He began writing the articles, but soon realized that there are a “lot of differences and nuances between the spoken and written word.”

As a result, he conceived the idea of a video dialogue between himself and Dr. Berenholz. He then “bounced it off” a number of his colleagues around the country to see if they would find such a video useful in their training programs.

“They were extremely enthusiastic,” he said.

Dr. Lippy thinks the informal dialogue, which will augment text on the Web site, makes the library a better teaching tool and will enable physicians to communicate more effectively with their patients and their families.

One of his hopes for the library is that it will help make the original procedures more successful by “sharing our experience with less-experienced physicians.”

Currently, his main interest is in revision surgery for people who have had stapedectomies that didn’t work.

“We routinely receive two or three e-mails a day from physicians or patients from around the world asking for help,” he said.

The first video was filmed Thursday, and the online library is produced by David W. Lippy, who is affiliated with Digital Media Group in New Albany, Ohio.

Local vs. general anesthesia

One of the first video topics will be about why Dr. Lippy does the operation with his patient under local anesthesia rather than general anesthesia, as do most surgeons.

When a local is used, it makes it possible to immediately know if hearing has improved, and to make adjustments if necessary, he said. Also, the surgeon can inform the patient and family right away whether the surgery was a success, Dr. Lippy said.

A graduate of Niles McKinley High School and the Ohio State University School of Medicine, Dr. Lippy developed an interest in ear, nose and throat medicine while serving as a flight surgeon in the Air Force in the late 1950s.

“The pressure changes during penetration landings caused a lot of ear problems,” he explained.

Then, about the time he started his practice, the stapedectomy operation was conceived, and he studied with the doctor who did the first stapedectomy.

Dr. Lippy is a member of Beth Israel Temple Center in Warren and Congregation Rodef Sholom in Youngstown. He and his wife, Sandra, have four children, David, Stephen, Frank and Brian, none of whom are in practice with him; and nine grandchildren.

alcorn@vindy.com