Specialties
Ruth J. Davis, MD
Assistant Professor
- Division of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
Dr. Davis is a translational and clinical researcher with a focus on voice and airway disorders. Her research has been funded by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) and the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund. Her primary areas of study include laryngotracheal stenosis, aging voice, and laryngeal leukoplakia. Her research program applies principles of immunology, fibroblast biology, and tissue engineering to the study of novel treatments for laryngeal disease.
- University Hospital Clinic: 608-263-6190
Education
- MD, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH
- Residency, Otolaryngology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD
- Fellowship, Laryngology, Vanderbilt Voice Center, Nashville, TN
Clinical Specialties
Dr. Davis is certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology and is a fellowship-trained laryngologist who specializes in the care of patients with voice, airway, and swallowing disorders. Her expertise includes airway stenosis and complex airway reconstruction, care of professional voice users, vocal cord paralysis, inflammatory and infectious disorders of the larynx, recurrent respiratory papillomatosis, laryngeal leukoplakia, and early-stage laryngeal cancers. Dr. Davis takes a patient-centered approach, emphasizing patient values in a shared decision-making process. Given the intersection of laryngeal disease with a variety of organ systems, Dr. Davis recognizes the importance of multidisciplinary collaboration in the personalized management of her patients, working closely with colleagues in speech-language pathology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, thoracic surgery, neurology, radiation oncology, and physical therapy, among others.
Dr. Davis provides a wide range of services including Airway Dilation, Airway Reconstruction, Cricopharyngeal myotomy, Laryngeal Papilloma Laser Treatment, Laryngeal Surgery, Laser Procedures, Leukoplakia Laser Treatment, Microflap excision of vocal fold lesions, Microlaryngoscopy, Tracheostomy, Vocal Cord Injection, Zenker’s Diverticulectomy.
Research Interests
Dr. Davis is a translational and clinical researcher with a focus on voice and airway disorders. Her research has been funded by the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Foundation (AAO-HNSF) and the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund. Her primary areas of study include laryngotracheal stenosis, aging voice, and laryngeal leukoplakia. Her research program applies principles of immunology, fibroblast biology, and tissue engineering to the study of novel treatments for laryngeal disease.
Dr. Davis recently received a $40,000 Career Development Award from the Triological Society. Read more here.
Recent Publications
Surgical Recurrence Across Endoscopic Surgical Techniques in Idiopathic Subglottic Stenosis.
Bowen AJ, Awadallah AS, Ali H, McCalla M, Roitman A, Leverson G, Khalil YH, Ring S, Edell E, Bayan S, Koster M, Xie K, Davis R, Francis DO, Dailey SH, Ekbom D
Laryngoscope 2025 Apr 15;
[PubMed ID: 40231755]Characterizing the Cellular Constituents of Proximal Airway Disease in Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis.
Ye W, Clark E, Talatala E, Davis R, Ramirez-Solano M, Sheng Q, Yang J, Collins S, Hillel A, Gelbard A
Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2025 Mar 10;
[PubMed ID: 40062629]Third Proceedings of The North American Airway Collaborative (NoAAC): Consensus Statement on Trial Design for Airway Stenosis.
Davis RJ, Akst LM, Allen CT, Battafarano RJ, Born HL, Bryson PC, Clary MS, Crosby T, Dhillon VK, Dion G, Kavookjian H, Leahy KP, Lina I, Mirza N, Morrison RJ, Motz KM, Nelson RC, Preciado D, Sandu K, Spiegel JR, Walsh J, Hillel AT, Gelbard A
JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2025 Mar 01; 151(3): 263-267
[PubMed ID: 39847385]Bilateral internal superior laryngeal nerve injections for unexplained chronic cough.
Bowen AJ, Roitman A, Ring S, Francis DO, Davis RJ, McCulloch T, Dailey SH
Am J Otolaryngol 2025; 46(1): 104568
[PubMed ID: 39740535]Recurrent Inflammatory Reaction to Laryngeal Hyaluronic Acid Injection.
Kreuser H, Fletcher KC, Davis RJ
Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol 2025 Apr; 134(4): 291-293
[PubMed ID: 39614754]