Stephen O’Leary

Bio Stephen O’Leary is the Head of Otolaryngology at the University of Melbourne and a senior Otolaryngologist at the Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. He obtained his PhD in 1994 under Prof Graeme Clark and has undertaken post-doctoral research at Oxford under David Moore and the University of Utrecht under Jan Veldman. Prof O’Leary’s clinical and research interests are in cochlear implantation, drug delivery to the ear and otology. His group specializes in clinical translation of experimental research and CI-related clinical research, and has pioneered virtual reality surgical simulation of the ear. Prof O’Leary’s special interest has been in the preservation of inner ear function during surgery on the cochlea. His team have performed pioneering work on the role of steroids in protecting the inner ear during cochlear implant surgery and were the first to record intracochlear electrocochleography real-time from a cochlear implant. This technique was developed on Cochlear’s devices. Finally, Prof O’Leary is deeply engaged in the treatment of ear disease in Indigenous Australian children, from both the clinical and research perspectives.