Assistant Professor
Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School
Dr. Alicia M. Quesnel is an otologist and neurotologist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology- Head and Neck Surgery at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA USA. Her clinical practice focuses on surgery for otosclerosis (stapedectomy), cochlear implant surgery, chronic ear disease (including cholesteatoma and repair of tympanic membrane perforations), and skull base surgeries, including vestibular schwannoma, spinal fluid leak repair, and management of intratemporal facial nerve conditions.
Dr. Alicia Quesnel's research interests focus on the histopathology of the temporal bone, particularly related to otosclerosis and post-cochlear implantation pathology. She is the Director of the Otopathology Laboratory at Mass. Eye and Ear, which houses one of the world’s largest and most well-curated human temporal bone collections. She also participates in the efforts of the NIDCD National Temporal Bone Hearing and Balance Pathology Resource Registry, which is based at MEE.
She has been a faculty member in multiple temporal bone surgical technique courses including those with a focus on endoscopic ear surgery, with roles including director, co-director, lecturer, surgical instructor, guest instructor, or live surgery demonstrations. She co-directed Advanced Techniques in Cochlear Implantation Course for Pediatric and Neurotology Fellows at Mass. Eye and Ear in 2017 and 2019. She directed the Pre- World Congress in Endoscopic Ear Surgery Workshops, including the Hands-On Endoscopic Ear Surgery Workshop and Live Surgery Demonstration and Discussion Workshop in June 2019.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has explored aerosolization in otologic surgery as a potential mechanism of spread for Sars-CoV-2 using cadaveric models. In collaboration with academic faculty and an industry partner, she led the development of a manufactured custom mitigation drape for use in otologic/ neurotologic surgery to reduce biomaterial aerosolization.