The 25-member board oversees accreditation of doctors who have trained in otolaryngology. It has certified about 14,000 residents who currently treat conditions of the ear, nose and throat. Chole is one of 21 directors on the ABO's board. Chole studies the cell biology of osteoclasts, which are bone cells that influence bone strength.
Overactive osteoclasts can damage bones in the middle ear that transmit sounds to the inner ear.
He works with experimental models of middle-ear conditions that result from inappropriate osteoclast cell activity. For example, he studies how osteoclasts are activated by cholesteatomas, cyst-like growths on the eardrum that impair hearing if left untreated. He also is known for discovering and developing an animal model for cholesteatoma and a prosthetic device that functions as a replacement for middle-ear bones damaged by injury or infection. And he is co-developer of an antimicrobial tympanostomy tube used to ventilate the ear in patients suffering from repeated ear infections. This device halves the rate of infection.