Chief of the Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Director of the Facial Nerve Center at Mass. Eye and Ear, Dr. Tessa Hadlock is a pioneering clinician-scientist with more than 20 years of experience in otolaryngology. Dr. Hadlock earned her undergraduate degree in mathematics and biochemistry from Bowdoin College in 1990 and her medical degree from the Division of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. In 1995, Dr. Hadlock joined Mass. Eye and Ear/Harvard Medical School as an otolaryngology resident, where she also completed her fellowship training in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery in 1999. Now, in addition to running the Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Division at Mass. Eye and Ear, she is a Professor of Otolaryngology at Harvard Medical School.

With a passion for managing facial nerve disorders, Dr. Hadlock devotes her career to improving the lives of patients with facial paralysis. She has innovated and popularized surgical, medical, and physical therapy strategies for these patients that have been embraced by colleagues in the field. In her research, she focuses on establishing more effective methods for regenerating facial nerve function. She is one of very few facial plastic and reconstructive surgeons in the field with funding from the National Institutes of Health. In addition to basic science work, she has published numerous clinical outcomes studies on her extensive experience. She has also developed tools to measure the efficacy of reanimation procedures, which are frequently referenced in international literature.

In addition to her dedication to her patients and research, she also shares her expertise through mentorship and as a preceptor for the clinical fellowship program in facial plastic and reconstructive surgery at Mass. Eye and Ear.

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Selected Publications:

In vitro and in vivo biocompatibility analysis of poly(glycerol sebacate) as a potential nerve guide material. Sundback C, Shyu J, Sheahan T, Wang Y, Faquin W, Langer R, Vacanti J, Hadlock T. Biomaterials 2005. 26/27:5454-64.

Botulinum toxin and quality of life in patients with facial paralysis. Hadlock T, Mehta R. Arch Facial Plast Surg. 2008. 10(2):84-7.

A novel method of head fixation for the study of rodent facial function. Hadlock T, Kowaleski J, Mackinnon S, Heaton J. Exp Neurol. 2007. 205(1):279-82.

A system for studying facial nerve function in rats through simultaneous bilateral monitoring of eyelid and whisker movements. Heaton JT, Kowaleski JM, Bermejo R, Ziegler HP, Ahlgren DJ, Hadlock TA. J Neurosci Methods. 2008. 171(2):197-206.

Rodent facial nerve recovery after selected lesions and repair techniques. Hadlock T, Kowaleski J, Mackinnon S, Heaton J. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2010. Jan;125(1):99-109.

Toward a universal, automated facial measurement tool in facial reanimation. Hadlock TA, Urban LS. Arch Facial Plast Surg. 2012 Jul-Aug. 14(4); p. 277-282.