Prof Jafri Kuthubutheen

Dr. Kuthubutheen graduated from the University of Western Australia with a Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery with Honours in 2002. He then undertook specialist ENT training in Perth, Western Australia and obtained his Fellowship in Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery in 2010.

From 2011 he worked as a Consultant ENT surgeon at two of Western Australias teaching hospitals - Royal Perth Hospital and Fremantle Hospital for one and a half years. During this time he was also a visiting ENT surgeon to rural and remote Western Australia, with an interest in Indigenous Ear Health.

In 2012 he left for Canada to pursue further specialist training as a Fellow in Otology and Skull Base Surgery at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. Under the guidance of Dr. Joseph Chen, Dr. Julian Nedzelski and Dr. Vincent Lin, he worked in one of the busiest tertiary adult ear surgery centres in Canada for 2 and 1/2 years. Sunnybrook runs the largest Cochlear Implant program and Acoustic Neuroma service in the country. During his time there, he became the inaugural J Pearson Fellow in Otology and Skull Base Surgery and helped to establish several new research projects.

Prior to leaving for Canada, he was awarded the Warren Jones Postgraduate Research Scholarship from the Fremantle Hospital Medical Research Foundation and the University of Western Australia. In 2017 he obtained his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in the field of Cochlear Implantation from the University of Western Australia.

He is actively involved in teaching medical students, residents, registrars and fellows. He has presented at many local and international conferences and has been an invited speaker and instructor at overseas skull base surgery courses. His research interests are in the field of hearing loss, cochlear implantation, chronic ear disease, and skull base surgery.

He is the current the ENT Clinical Lead in the Kimberley Region of Western Australia.

Jafri now works as a full time sub-specialist Otology and Skull Base Surgeon at Fiona Stanley Hospital, Perth Children's Hospital and Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital as well as in private at Western ENT.

Cochlear Implants and Bone Conduction Implants
We see both adults and children with hearing loss for cochlear implants and bone conduction implants. We practice a hearing and structure preservation approach. We work with all major implant manufacturers and offer the latest implants available in the Australia. We also specialise in difficult implant cases and revision surgery. We participate in statewide and local multidisciplinary (MDT) implant meetings to offer the best advice on implant choice with evidenced based practice

Acoustic Neuroma Surgery
We see patients with all sizes of acoustic neuromas (benign tumours also known as vestibular schwannomas) to provide a comprehensive hearing, vestibular and surgical assessment. We offer acoustic neuroma surgery for patients who are deemed suitable. This includes translabyrinthine surgery and retrosigmoid surgery performed in conjunction with our neurosurgeons, and radiosurgery in conjunction with our radiation oncology partners.

Glue ear, Otitis media and Cholesteatoma
We treat adults and kids with glue ear (OME) with grommets and chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM, or chronically infected / discharging ears. We see a large number of adult and kids with tympanic membrane retraction and cholesteatoma and offer a full complement of surgery including atticotomy, intact canal wall and modified radical mastoidectomy surgery. We also offer balloon eustachian tube dilation surgery in selected patients.

Repair of tympanic membrane (ear drum) perforations
We offer minimally invasive repairs of the tympanic membrane perforations (via an endaural approach) using a patients natural tissue grafts as well as synthetic graft options. This is with the aim to improve hearing, to waterproof the ear and to reduce recurrent infections. A full assessment will be required before deciding on the type of surgery required and the outcomes expected. We also specialise in revision surgery and difficult cases.

Otosclerosis and laser stapes surgery
We are one of the few centres in WA to offer laser surgery for patients with otosclerosis in suitable patients to improve their hearing with Otosclerosis. This is an established technique which minimises the surgical trauma of stapes surgery. In patients where stapes surgery is not possible, we offer a comprehensive assessment of alternative options.

Auditory Brainstem Implantation (ABI) and Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2)
We are the only service in Western Australia that offers Auditory Brainstem Implant Surgery for hearing rehabilitation in patients with NF2. This is done in conjunction with our neurosurgeons and audiologists based at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

Ossicular chain reconstructions (OCR)
We offer a comprehensive assessment for patients with conductive or mixed hearing loss due to ossicular chain abnormalities. These are conditions where the hearing bones are either missing, eroded or fixed due to ear disease or previous surgery. We utilise modern ossicular chain prostheses (which are artificial hearing bones) that are customised to the ear to improve hearing. Our hearing outcomes with OCR surgery have recently been included in a new internationally developed predictive tool (in conjunction with the University of Chicago) to assess surgical outcomes. Patients will need a detailed assessment to determine their individual suitability for this surgery.

Exostoses surgery (swimmer's ear) and ear canal surgery
This is a common condition seen amongst surfers and swimmers in Western Australia and we offer surgery via an endaural approach for suitable patients experiencing recurrent ear infections and/or water trapping. We also treat symptomatic narrow ear canals to widen the ear.

Middle cranial fossa repair for CSF otorrhea and superior semicircular canal dehisence
We have the largest published experience in WA in the treatment of spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks into the ear which is an increasingly common problem. We also offer surgery for patients with symptomatic super semicircular canal dehiscence syndrome, third window lesions and perilymphatic fistula

Lateral skull base and temporal bone conditions
We offer a comprehensive assessment of patient with complex lateral skull base conditions involving the ear and temporal bones

Meneires disease - transtympanic treatment and surgery
We offer a comprehensive assessment for patients with Menieres including treatments such as transtympanic steroids, gentamicin and cochlear implantation in suitable patients

Qualifications:
MBBS, PhD, FRACS