Wolfgang Gstoettner

Prof. Wolfgang Gstöttner is an ENT surgeon and head of the University Hospital for ENT Diseases at the Medical University of Vienna. He performed Austria’s first active middle ear implant. He also performed the country’s first auditory brain stem implant. Dr. Gstöttner has published over 200 scientific papers and led several medical societies.

Advanced ENT Specialization

Dr. Gstöttner focuses on head and neck surgery and hearing restoration through neurosurgery. He treats conditions such as sensorineural hearing loss — a type of permanent hearing loss caused by damage to the inner ear or auditory nerve. He also treats nasal polyps and deviated septums. Additionally, the specialist uses laser partial larynx resection, a technique he introduced to Vienna in 1995. His therapeutic and surgical range includes:

• Cochlear implant placement
• Septoplasty (Deviated Septum Surgery)
• Cleft lip and palate repair
• Embolization for epistaxis — a procedure that blocks blood flow to stop severe nosebleeds
• Brainstem evoked response audiometry — a test that measures how the hearing nerve and brain respond to sounds

Surgical Firsts and Achievements

Dr. Gstöttner introduced several procedures to Austrian medicine. In 1998, he carried out the first implantation of an active middle ear implant. He later performed the first auditory brain stem implant in 2012. Furthermore, he was ranked among German-speaking ENT researchers in 2004. The specialist also chaired the 1996 International Cochlear Implant Workshop, which included the first live broadcast of the Vienna University ENT Clinic.

Clinical and Leadership Experience

• Since 2008 – Board Member and Head of ENT, Head and Neck Surgery at Medical University of Vienna
• 2000–2008 – Executive Director of the University ENT Clinic in Frankfurt
• 1993–2000 – Deputy Head of the University ENT Clinic in Vienna
• 1990–1993 – Senior Physician at the University Hospital ENT Clinic Vienna
• 2010 – Member of the Senate of the Medical University of Vienna
• 2018 – Member of the Higher Medical Council

Education and Training

• 1987–1990 – Training as an ENT specialist at the Vienna General Hospital
• 1993 – Appointed as University Teacher and Lecturer
• 1987 – Graduated in general medicine and began clinical practice

Research and Recognition

Dr. Gstöttner serves on several boards and has authored over 200 publications. He joined the scientific advisory board of the ENT journal in 2009. Additionally, he served as an editor for Acta Otolaryngol (Stockholm) starting in 2006.

Professional Memberships

• President of the Austrian Society of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery
• Politzer Society
• Collegium Otorhinolaryngologicum Amicitiae Sacrum
• German Society of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery
• Austrian Society of Surgery