Simply visit your GP and ask them to refer you to Professor Lloyd. If you are being referred by another specialist then they will refer you. You or your referring doctor should then contact us to arrange an appointment. You might be seen at Wilmslow Hospital or the Alexandra Hospital. Please telephone 01625 537486 or email nicki@earandhearing.co.uk if you have any questions. If you do not speak English, it is usually possible to arrange an interpreter but there will be an additional fee.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are insured, the cost of any consultation is in accordance with the fee schedules of your insurance company. Exceptionally, the cost may exceed the recommended fee. Professor Lloyd is recognized by all the major medical insurance companies. This includes AXA PPP, BUPA, WPA, Standard Life, Cigna and Simply Health.
If you are paying for yourself then we will let you know the fees in advance. Cash, personal cheques and all major credit and debit cards are accepted. There may be additional charges if you need to have a procedure such as microsuction or telescope examination of the nose. For details please call 01625 537486 or email nicki@earandhearing.co.uk.
If you are paying for the appointment yourself, we usually ask for payment prior to the consultation and Professor Lloyd’s personal assistant will contact you about this.
Patients are strongly advised to contact their insurance company prior to the appointment and obtain a preauthorization number. This will enable us to communicate directly with your insurance company. Please bring this and details of your insurance cover to the appointment. In addition, if you have any test results then please bring them with you. If you are paying for yourself, it helps to have a referral letter but it is not mandatory.
An initial appointment will take 30 minutes. A follow up appointment usually takes 15 minutes. For certain conditions, such as acoustic neuromas a longer consultation may be necessary.
This includes taking a thorough history and undertaking a detailed examination. The clinic rooms in which appointments are undertaken are well equipped and under some circumstances further investigations such as hearing tests, allergy tests, microscopic suction of the ear or endoscopies may be undertaken. Hearing tests are undertaken by fully trained audiologists. Other investigations are carried out by Professor Lloyd himself.
Sometimes other tests will be required. This may include blood tests, X rays, MRI scans or CT scans. These tests are performed at Wilmslow Hospital or the Alexandra Hospital. For those patients with balance problems a comprehensive series of balance tests may be recommended. These may be carried out elsewhere. Hearing tests in children under the age of three usually require specialist experience and children requiring such an assessment will be referred to a paediatric audiologist. It is usually possible to complete all investigations and have a further appointment to discuss the results within two weeks.
Yes. All correspondence is copied to you so that you can read through it at your leisure and acts as a reminder of what was discussed.
Professor Lloyd will discuss the potential benefits of any operation with you as well as the risks. It is important to weigh up the benefits and risks carefully before you decide if you want to proceed.
If you are insured, you should discuss the recommended procedure with your insurance company. There will be a code associated with the operation and Professor Lloyd’s personal assistant will inform you what that is. The insurance company will ask for that.
If you are paying for the operation yourself then Professor Lloyd’s personal assistant will put a quote together that includes the hospital fee, the anaesthetic fee and the surgeon fee. You can then decide if you want to go ahead.
Professor Lloyd’s personal assistant will then contact you to find a mutually acceptable date for the procedure. The hospital where the procedure is being carried out will then arrange for an assessment to make sure that you are fit for the procedure and arrange any additional tests that might be required eg blood tests, ECG.
You can usually take your medications on the morning of your surgery with a small amount of water. The hospital will confirm the details.
If you are diabetic, you will usually be first on the operating list.
If you take anticoagulants, you will need to stop these a few days before the operation. The exact details depend on which medication you are on. Again, the hospital will confirm the details but the following are the usual recommendations:
- Apixaban, Rivaroxaban, Edoxaban:
3 days. Restart after 24 hours
- Clopidogril:
7 days. Restart after 24 hours
- Warfarin:
3 days but will require injection of Heparin once daily instead. Coagulation blood test required day prior to surgery. Restart after 24 hours but continue with Heparin until clotting in treatment range (checked with blood test after 72 hours). Liaison with the coagulation clinic required.
- Aspirin:
Stop 7 days preop. Restart 24 hours postop.
You should double check with your specialist about whether it is safe to stop the medication.
If your procedure is under general anaesthetic (you are asleep), then you will need to stop eating and drinking 6 hours before the procedure. Detailed information on this will be provided by the hospital where the procedure is being performed. This is not usually necessary if you are having a local anaesthetic although it is best to avoid food for 6 hours if you are having sedation with your local anaesthetic procedure.
If your operation is in the morning, most commonly you will be asked to come in for 07:00. If the procedure is in the afternoon then you will normally be asked to come in at 11:00.
When you arrive you should come to the main reception desk and the receptionist will tell you where you need to go.
Please bring all your medications with you.
Once the procedure is completed, you will be taken to the recovery area where you can wake up under careful supervision. Once you are fully awake you will be taken back to the ward.
Most surgeries are undertaken as a day case, ie you come in for the procedure and go home on the same day. If this is the case, you usually stay in hospital for around 4 hours after the procedure. If you feel well, you have had something to eat and you have been to the toilet then you will usually be able to go home.
If you need to stay in longer after the procedure then you will usually be looked after on the ward until you are well enough to go home. Professor Lloyd will see you on a daily basis if an in patient stay is required. Occasionally, with more complex cases, you may spend 24 hours on the intensive care unit.
Ear Surgery
Most types of ear surgery are not painful and a combination of ibuprofen and paracetamol is usually all that is required. Occasionally a codeine based medication may also be needed but the pain killers will be tailored to your requirements and you will be given a week’s worth to take home after the operation. It is recommended that you alternate paracetamol and ibuprofen every four hours for the first 48 hours, but after a few days you may find that this is no longer necessary.