Biography

Ron J. Karni, MD serves as Chief of the Division of Head and Neck Surgical Oncology in the Department of Otorhinolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.  He obtained his medical degree at Baylor College of Medicine and then completed his residency training at Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine. Dr. Ron J. Karni has authored publications on the novel treatment of occult primary oropharyngeal cancer (the unknown primary) and practical tools to integrate evidence-based methods into the daily practice of medicine.  His current research focus includes de-escalation treatment strategies for throat cancer, morphoproteomic analysis of head and neck cancer, and HPV-related malignancies of the head and neck.  Dr. Ron J. Karni is co-Principal Investigator on a CPRIT grant studying new treatments for head and neck lymphedema using near infrared fluorescent technology. Dr. Karni is board certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery.

Dr. Ron J. Karni’s practice focuses on the management of benign and malignant tumors of the head and neck, including throat cancer, oral cancer, larynx cancer, locally advanced skin cancer, salivary gland tumors, and thyroid/parathyroid disease. He performs transoral robotic surgery for tumors of the throat, a modern approach to minimizing the side effects of treatment for throat cancer. Dr. Ron J. Karni also performs ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration biopsy for thyroid nodules and minimally-invasive thyroid and parathyroid surgery.

Education

Medical School
Baylor College of Medicine, 2003
Residency
Washington University School of Medicine, 2008

Publications

Aquiles Sanchez J, Karni RJ, Wangh LJ. Fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis of the relationship between chromosome location and nuclear morphology in human neutrophils. Chromosoma. 1997 106:168-177.

• Karni RJ, Wangh LJ, Sanchez JA. Nonrandom location and orientation of the inactive X-chromosome in human neutrophil nuclei. Chromosoma. 2001 110: 26774.

• Qiu J, Gunaratne P, Peterson LE, Khurana D, Walsham N, Loulseged H, Karni RJ, Roussel E, Gibbs RA, Margolin JF, Gingras MC. Novel potential ALL low-risk markers revealed by gene expression profiling with new high-throughput SSH-CCSPCR. Leukemia. 2003 Sep: 17(9):1891-900.

• Neely JG, Paniello RC, Nussenbaum B, Engel SH, Karni RJ, Fraley PL. Practical guides to efficient life-long learning. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2006 Oct: 135(4):608-15.

• Neely JG, Karni RJ, Engel SH, Fraley PL, Nussenbaum B, Paniello RC.Practical guides to understanding sample size and minimal clinically important difference. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007 Jan: 136(1):14-8.

• Karni RJ, Engel SH, Fraley PL, Nussenbaum B, Paniello RC, Neely JG. Practical guide to analyzing your own practice: steps toward “Prospective analysis of practice”. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007 Apr: 136(4):515-8.

• Neely JG, Paniello RC, Fraley PL, Salcman JT, Karni RJ, Nussenbaum B, Engel SH. Practical guide when searching for answers: how to find the right articles. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007 Jul: 137(1):5-9.

• Stewart MG, Neely JG, Paniello RC, Fraley PL, Karni RJ, Nussenbaum B. Practical guide to understanding outcomes research. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007 Nov: 137(5):700-6.

• Neely JG, Karni RJ, Nussenbaum B, Paniello RC, Fraley PL, Wang EW, Rich JT. Practical guide to understanding the value of case reports. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2008 Mar: 138(3):261-4.

• Neely JG, Karni RJ, Wang EW, Rich JT, Paniello RC, Voelker CC, Nussenbaum B. Practical guide to efficient analysis and diagramming articles. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2009 Jan: 140(1):4-8.

• Wang EW, Ghogomu N, Voelker CC, Rich JT, Paniello RC, Nussenbaum B, Karni RJ, Neely JG. Practical guide for understanding confidence intervals and P values. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2009 June: 140(6):794-9.

• Karni RJ, Rich JT, Sinha P, Haughey BH. Transoral laser microsurgery: A new approach for unknown primaries of the head and neck. Laryngoscope. 2011 June: 121(6):1194-201.

• Ansari M, Guo S, Fakhri S, Citardi MJ, Blanco A, Patino M, Buryanek J, Amato R, Karni RJ, Brown RE. Sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma (SNUC): Morphoproteomic-guided treatment paradigm with clinical efficacy. Ann Clin Lab Sci. 2013 Winter: 43(1):45-53.

• Liu J, Brown RE, Rubenfeld S, Karni RJ. Papillary thyroid carcinoma with prominent hobnail features diagnosed preoperatively by fine needle aspiration and demonstrating constitutive activation of mTOR signaling pathway: A case report. Clinical and Experimental Pathology research article. 4:1 2013 Dec.

• Cattano D, Karni RJ, Hagberg CA. Rescuing direct laryngoscopy: Is it enough for the surgeon? British Journal of Anesthesiology 2013 July: 111(1):128-8.

• Herring KG, Panthayi S, Sheinbaum R, Hagberg CA, Karni RJ, Cattano D. Perioperative airway management of a mediastinal mass through early intervention with Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO). International Journal of Clinical Anesthesiology 2014: 2(1):1022.

• Patel SA, Magnuson JS, Holsinger FC, Karni RJ, Richmon JD, Gross ND, Bhrany AD, Ferrell JK, Ford SE, Kennedy AA, Mendez E. Robotic surgery for primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma of unknown site. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2013 Nov: 139(11):1203-11.

• Ferrell JK, Roy S, Karni RJ, Yuksel S. Applications for transoral robotic surgery in the pediatric airway. Laryngoscope. 2014 Nov;124(11):2630-5

• Velez-Perez A, Huang RS, Everett JM, Guo S, Buryanek J, Karni RJ, Brown RE. Carcinosarcoma of the parotid: investigating its biology with morphoproteomics. Int J Surg Pathol. 2015 Apr;23(2):116-21

• Chodkiewicz HM, Karni RJ, MacFarlane DF. Use of the Parell Frontal Sinus T-Stent to Prevent External Auditory Canal Stenosis. Dermatol Surg. 2015 Aug;41(8):983-5

POSTER AND PRESENTATIONS:

• Anterior mediastinal mass: Organized Anesthetic Management, American Society of Anesthesiology, October 2011.

• Hypotympanopharyngeal fistula: a complication of temporal bone osteoradionecrosis. Combined Otolaryngologic Spring Meeting, 2013.

• Role of transoral robotic surgery in the management of unknown primary head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Combined Otolaryngologic Spring Meeting, 2013.

• A comparison of cellular damage using electrocautery and CO2 laser in transoral robotic glossectomy. American Academy of Otolaryngology, 2013.

• Assessing lymphatic response to cancer treatments using near infrared fluorescence imaging. Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancer Symposium, Scottsdale 2014.

• Marginal zone lymphoma of parotid gland in a patient with Sjogren’s Syndrome. Texas Society of Pathologists, 2014.

• Assessing lymphatic response to treatments in head and neck cancer using near infrared fluorescence imaging. American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting, San Diego 2014.

• Differential effects of sevoflurane versus propofol on the morphoproteomic expression of oral cavity and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. American Society of Anesthesia 2014.

• Assessing lymphatic response to treatments in head and neck cancer using near infrared fluorescence imaging SPIE Translational Biophotonics 2014, Houston, Texas 2014.

• Tc-99m Sestamibi Parathyroid SPECT-CT Scans is the only diagnostic study required in most patients with primary hyperparathyroidism Society of Nuclear Medicine 2014

• Transoral robotic surgery with CO2 Laser: Technical and histologic advantages. Israeli Society of Otolaryngology 2014

• Assessing lymphatic response to cancer treatments using near infrared fluorescence imaging. American Society for Radiation Oncology, Scottsdale, 2014.

• Transoral robotic surgery and the pediatric airway. Combined Otolaryngology Sections Meeting, 2014.

• Transoral robotic surgery and unilateral radiation in selected tonsil cancer. International Federation of Head & Neck Organizing Societies , New York ,2014.

• Assessing Lymphatic Response to Radiation Therapy Using Near Infrared Fluorescence Imaging. Combined Otolaryngological Spring Meetings (COSM), American Head and Neck Society, Boston, Massachusetts 2015.

• Tc-99m Sestamibi parathyroid SPECT-CT scans is the only diagnostic study required in most patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) Annual Meeting, Baltimore ,Maryland, 2015

• Feasibility of a Novel Robotic Platform for Laryngeal Surgery. American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Dallas, Texas 2015.

INVITED LECTURES:

• Combined UT-Houston and M.D. Anderson Head and Neck Surgery Grand Rounds. “A New Treatment Paradigm for Head and Neck Cancer from an Unidentified Primary Site using Transoral Laser Microsurgery,” (June 16, 2010)

• UT-Houston Division of Oncology Grand Rounds “A New Paradigm in the Treatment of Oropharynx Cancer,” (Feb 11, 2010)

• UT-Houston Department of General Surgery Grand Rounds. “Carcinoma of the Neck,” (Sept 2, 2010)

• Instituto Oncologico Nacional, Panama City, Panama. ”Paradigms in the Management of Head and Neck Cancer using Robotic Surgery,” (April 9, 2011)

• UT-Houston Oral Maxillo-Facial Surgery Grand Rounds. “Robotic Surgery of the Head and Neck,” (May 3, 2011)

• Memorial-Hermann Texas Medical Center Webinar. “Update in the Workup and Treatment of Thyroid Nodules,” (June 1, 2011)

• UT-Houston Family Practice Grand Rounds. ”Update in the Workup and Treatment of Thyroid Nodules,” (June 1, 2011)

• Instituto Oncologico Nacional, Panama City, Panama. ”Update in Transoral Robotic Surgery,” (April 12, 2012)

• UT-Houston Noon Oncology Series “Progress & Projections for Head and Neck Cancer and the 21st Century,” (May 24, 2011)

• UT-Houston Department of Anesthesiology Grand Rounds, “Using ECMO for Intubation in Mediastinal Tumors,” (August 2, 2012)

• UT-Houston Department of Otolaryngology Grand Rounds. “Surgeon-performed ultrasound of the head and neck,” (February 7, 2013)

• Lost Pines 2014 Lecture “Thyroid Nodule Update, “ (April 6, 2014)

• MHHS Rehab Service Line & MD Anderson Rehab Service Line Medical Professionals, “Shifting Paradigms in Cancer Rehabilitation, “(April 25-26, 2015)