Rick A. Friedman, M.D., PhD.

Otology/Skull Base Surgery, House Clinic Chief, Section on Genetic Disorders of the Ear, House Research Institute’s “Research towards a fundamental biological understanding of hearing, its protection and restoration.”

Clinical Professor, USC Keck School of Medicine

Dr. Rick Friedman’s areas of expertise include all areas of lateral skull base surgery including acoustic neuroma, glomus tumors and meningiomas, surgery for chronic ear disease, infection and cholesteatoma, Stapedectomy for otosclerosis, cochlear and auditory brainstem implants, the medical and surgical management of vertigo and Meniere’s disease, and the rehabilitation of all forms of hearing loss.

In addition, Dr. Friedman’s area of research expertise include gene discovery and targeted therapies for age-related hearing loss, noise-induced hearing loss, and Meniere’s disease.  I have NIH and private funding for these studies.

He received his BA degree in psychology from UCLA in 1984.  He earned his MD (1988) and PhD (1994) from UCSD.  Dr. Friedman completed his internship (1989) and residency in otolaryngology (1994) at UCSD Medical Center. He took a Neuotology Fellowship at the House Clinic in 1995.

Dr. Friedman is the co-chairman of the Medical Advisory Board of the Acoustic Neuroma Association, and co-founder and scientific advisory board member of Otonomy Inc,, a pharmaceutical company directed at delivering medicines to the inner ear.

Dr. Friedman is a member of a highly select academic society in our field, Collegium Otorhinolaryngologicum. He is a member of the Triological Society and received the highest honor for his scientific thesis. He is a member of the American Academy of Otolaryngology and, in that capacity, has served on a number of committees including hearing and balance, awards and grants, and skull base surgery.

Dr. Friedman is a member of the American Otological Society, the American Neurotological Society, the Otosclerosis study group, and am the Secretary of the North American Skull Base Society.  I am a reviewer and funded researcher for the National Institute of Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD).  I have served as the chief of Otology at SVMC and the chief of Skull Base Surgery at CSMC.  I am a faculty member in good standing of the division of otolaryngology at the USC Keck School of Medicine.