Prof. M.D. Arzu Tatlipinar

I'm a 72-year-old retired music teacher who had completely lost my sense of smell for over a year. My world had become flat and joyless—I couldn't smell rain, coffee, or my wife's perfume. Multiple doctors dismissed it as 'just aging.' Dr. Tatlipinar was different. She spent an hour asking detailed questions about the onset and conducted a nasal endoscopy that felt surprisingly gentle. She discovered a complex anatomical blockage combined with chronic inflammation that others had missed. Her treatment plan—a combination of targeted medication and a minor office procedure—was explained with such clarity using 3D models. Three months later, I cried when I smelled lilacs again. Her patience with my many questions and her holistic approach (she even asked how it affected my mood) was extraordinary. She didn't just treat a nose; she restored a fundamental piece of my humanity.

Our 4-year-old son, Leo, developed sudden, terrifying stridor in the middle of the night—a high-pitched, wheezing sound with every breath. We rushed to Acibadem Fulya's ER in a panic. Dr. Tatlipinar was the on-call ENT and met us within minutes. While we were frantic, she was a calm, focused presence. She diagnosed it as croup complicated by a rare, severe laryngeal spasm. What amazed us was her bedside manner with our terrified child. She didn't wear her white coat, used a tiny, toy-like light, and let him hold the mirror. She avoided any invasive tests initially, opting for a careful trial of nebulized medication in my arms. It worked. She admitted him for observation and checked on him every two hours herself, even at 3 AM. She treated us, the scared parents, as part of the care team. We left not just with a healthy boy, but with a protocol and confidence for the future. She's a true crisis artist.

As a 30-year-old voiceover artist, my livelihood depends on my vocal cords. I came to Dr. Tatlipinar for what I thought was a routine checkup for recurring hoarseness. Using ultra-high-definition stroboscopy—a technology she explained in fascinating detail—she didn't just find minor inflammation. She identified a minute, pre-nodular change on my left vocal fold that standard exams would have missed. Her approach was uniquely collaborative. She filmed the procedure and showed me the playback, pointing out the subtle asymmetry in vibration. Instead of just saying 'rest your voice,' she designed a 'vocal hygiene' plan with my specific work patterns in mind and partnered me with a speech therapist she trusts. The follow-up was meticulous. She even asked me to record a before-and-after audio clip for her own research. This wasn't a checkup; it was a strategic defense of my career, handled with the precision of a micro-surgeon and the insight of a coach.

My case was considered highly complex: a revision endoscopic sinus surgery after two failed attempts elsewhere left me with chronic pain, recurrent infections, and scar tissue. I was skeptical and emotionally drained. Dr. Tatlipinar's pre-operative approach was unlike anything I'd experienced. She ordered a specific type of CT scan and then used advanced software to create a navigational 3D map of my sinuses, which she reviewed with me for 45 minutes, explaining the 'obstacle course' of previous surgical damage. The surgery itself used real-time image guidance. But what truly set her apart was the post-op care. She personally performed every delicate debridement in the clinic over six weeks, never delegating it, each time explaining what she was seeing and how the tissues were healing. She was relentlessly optimistic but honest. Today, I'm infection-free and off all medication. She tackled a surgical mess with the patience of an archaeologist restoring a fragile artifact, and she gave me my life back.