The Leicester Balance course at De Montfort University
- Expert talks
- Master classes
- Case studies
- Practical sessions
The 3-day intensive course promotes a multidisciplinary approach to the dizzy patient and is designed to appeal to all those who have an interest in balance including managing balance patients. The course would be relevant to ENT and medical consultants and trainees, audiologists, clinical scientists and physiotherapists. We always welcome colleagues from other medical backgrounds, and from around the world, with an interest in the balance patient in a relaxed and interactive environment.
Topics covered will include
- Mechanical Stimulation of Balance Function
- A topical peer discussion of a range of pathologies: Meniere's disease, BPPV, vestibular neuritis, vestibulopathy, migraine, non-vestibular causes of dizziness, superior canal dehiscence, paediatric dizziness, PPPD, and others from our highly experienced faculty
- A comprehensive clinical assessment of balance patients, including practical demonstrations, form a medical and scientific approach
- Demonstrations and some hands on with, vHIT, the new Bertec video posturography, and the new TRV BPPV chair
- Problem Based Learning in areas around VNG recording and Caloric testing
- Medical management and Vestibular rehabilitation in a case based or problem based learning approach
The course includes refreshments and snacks throughout the day and lunch. There is also the keynote lecture followed by the formal course dinner, allowing networking opportunities.
Faculty:
Professor Peter Rea is a consultant ear nose and throat surgeon at the Leicester Royal Infirmary where he has been in post since 2004. He runs one of the busiest balance clinics in the UK where, with his team, has approximately 7,000 balance patient appointments per year. He is Honorary Professor of Balance Medicine at De Montfort University, and Honorary Professor to the Departments of Neuroscience and Informatics at The University of Leicester.
He is currently President of the Royal Society of Medicine, Section of Otology, for 2023-2024, as well as the UK secretary of The European Association of Otology and Neuro-otology (2022-2024) and Past-President of The British Society of Otology with his term of office 2020-2022. He was previously Chairman of The British Society of Neuro-otology from 2013-2019.
Professor Rea is on the faculty of several national and international otology and neuro-otology meetings and courses. This includes Academic Vice-Chair of BACO 2023, the UK’s biggest ENT academic meeting. He has run the annual 3-day Leicester Balance Course since 2004 so this will be his 20th anniversary year!
His research interests include intra-tympanic therapies for Meniere’s Disease with a landmark paper published in the Lancet in 2016, and collaboration with a Nasdaq listed biotech firm trialling novel injectable drugs for both Meniere’s and tinnitus. He was also clinical lead on a collaboration with leading computer scientists in the UK and USA, and IBM in the UK, developing artificial intelligence-led diagnostic solutions for dizziness (BalanceAID. He has authored many scientific papers and writes for leading textbooks of ENT, most recently the Oxford Textbook of Vertigo, the Oxford Textbook of Otolaryngology and Scott Brown Otolaryngology.
Professor Joel A Goebel, MD, FACS, FRCS, Professor Emeritus of Otolaryngology, Department of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine
Before retirement from clinical practice in June, 2020, he was the Director of the Dizziness and Balance Centre for clinical and clinical research activities. He has published over 120 peer reviewed and invited publications and continues his research activities as a consultant on two government grants and one international consortium. He is the 2006-2007 past president of the American Neurotology Society and served as Vice Chairman and Residency Program Director in the department. Current research interests include development of a portable dynamic posturography system, assessment and prevention of spatial disorientation in high performance flight, and development of early predictors for development of persistent postural-perceptual dizziness (PPPD) following vestibular injury. His lecture activities centre around clinical and laboratory assessment and treatment of vestibular disease.
Professor Chris Degg - Professor in Balance Science and Consultant Clinical Scientist Nottingham University Hospitals. He is an NHS Clinical Scientist for the past 31 years, the first 21 years as Head of Evoked Potentials and latterly acting Head of Physiological Measurement in the Department of Medical Physics, University Hospitals Leicester. For the last 10 years as Head of Evoked Potentials in the Department of Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering, Nottingham University Hospitals.
He has been the Chair of the IPEM Physiological Measurements specialist interest group, Chair of the BSA professional guidance group and external examiner for both City University London and University College London.
Mr Daniel Petersson – Specialist Physiotherapist in Dizziness. Master´s degree medicine with specialization in physiotherapy. Adjunct Professor at Linköping University, Sweden. About 14 years of experience in the field of dizziness and balance disorders. He operates a private company offering educate and training to heath professionals as well as designing and producing vestibular anatomical models. He describes himself as a ‘vestiboliholic’.
Ms Michaela Burton – Vestibular Audiologist and Clinical Hypnotherapist, founder of the ‘The Balance Lady’ with over 20 years of experience in helping people with a variety of vestibular issues, based in Leicester
Mr Anil Banerjee - Consultant ENT Surgeon, Leicester. His advanced training included the world renowned ENT Fellowship at The Royal Brisbane Infirmary. He regularly teaches on management of balance disorders as part of national and international faculties. He was a cofounder of the first Balance Course at the Royal College of Surgeons and has taught on the course each year since then. He is also asked to lecture on balance disorders to ENT Consultants, GPs, Audiologists and Physiotherapists around the UK. He runs balance clinics both within the NHS and privately. As well as editing a national ENT journal and publishing over 70 research and clinical papers, Mr Banerjee has appeared in various magazines including ‘Chris Steele at Home’. He has advised the BBC regarding the clinical management of patients. He has also been an advisor to the Royal College of Surgeons, The Department of Health and Spire Hospitals on various ENT conditions including balance
Prof. Owen Judd - Consultant ENT Surgeon and Professor of Balance Medicine, Derby. Professor Owen Judd is a Fellow of all four Royal Surgical Colleges of England, Ireland, Edinburgh and Glasgow. He holds a rare dual fellowship being one of only a few surgeons to also hold a Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians. He has a special interest in Neurotology (disorders of the brain and ear, especially balance, dizziness and facial paralysis. He is a recognised lecturer and teacher and holds a prestigious Visiting Professorship in Balance Medicine in India. He is actively involved in research in all aspects of ENT, but especially complex ear disorders, balance disorders, and the voice. He has published over 75 peer-reviewed and invited papers in national and international journals including 11 Cochrane Systematic Reviews. He has published two textbooks and 6 book chapters and is currently writing two further books.
Dr Waheeda Pagarkar - Consultant Paediatric Audio-vestibular Physician, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London. Dr Waheeda Pagarkar has been a consultant in audiovestibular medicine and manages children with a range of hearing and balance difficulties. Her specialty clinics include paediatric dizziness and balance disorders and dual sensory impairment. She is involved in both teaching and educational supervision, and has several presentations at national and international meetings.
Dr Peter Savundra - Consultant Audiovestibular Physician, ENT 150, London
Peter has a special interest in the management of concussive injuries and reducing the cognitive impact of auditory and vestibular dysfunction. He is a founder member of the Vestibular Interdisciplinary Working Group (VIWG)
Dr Yougan Saman - Consultant ENT surgeon, Leicester. Specialist in BPPV and has published numerous peer reviewed papers on a variety of balance related studies.
Mrs Mahdiyya Dharas – Lecturer in Vestibular Rehabilitation, Leicester. Specialising in Dizziness and Vertigo exercises, coupled with mindfulness, founder of ‘Dizzy Ears, Vestibular Rehabilitation’. More than 10 years of clinical experience both in the NHS and privately.
Mr Rakesh Patel - Associate Professor in Audiology, De Montfort University, Leicester. Deputy Head of School of the Leicester School of Allied Health Sciences and the academic lead in Audiology at the university. He has grown the Audiology department to be the largest undergraduate provision for training Audiologists and Hearing Aid Dispensers. He is the chairperson for all universities in England offering a Batchelor of Science in Audiology.
Location and Facilities
The course will be held at De Montfort University, boasting modern facilities and located in the heart of Leicester with excellent transport links. The campus is self-contained and talks will be held in the modern Huw Aston Building and the state of the art Vijay Patel Building which boasts an outdoor terrace where delegates can relax and reflect. The surrounding area has a number of hotels within a 10-minute walk and also a number of restaurants catering for various tastes due to the multicultural nature of the city.
Course fees
Non-Medics: £550
Medics: £625
Consultants: £700
Course fees include refreshments and lunch for the 3 days and the course dinner in the evening is sponsored by Interacoustics.
20 CPD credits from ENT UK (TBC)
For all queries please contact us at leicesterbalancecourse@dmu.ac.uk