Prof. Antonino Roberto Antonelli passed away peacefully on May 25, with his beloved wife Anna and daughters Paola and Chiara by his side.
He was born in Milan in 1934; his father’s family came from Molise, while his mother’s family had roots in Abruzzo. In 1958, he obtained a MD in Medicine and Surgery at the University of Milan, and in the subsequent three-year period he completed his residency in Otorhinolaryngology, under the direction of Prof. Ettore Bocca. Notably, Professor Antonelli spent one year (1960) at the Institute of Physiology of the University of Pisa, where he performed several experimental studies on neurophysiology of the hearing and olfactory system. The development of his clinical and scientific activity took place under the leadership of Prof. Bocca first at the University of Sassari (1961-1968), then at the University of Ferrara (1968-1972), and subsequently at the University of Milan, where he returned in 1972. In 1982, he was appointed Associate Professor, and in 1983 he took over the Chairmanship of the Section of Otorhinolaryngology of the University of Brescia – Spedali Civili. In 1986, he developed a program of Residency at the University of Brescia, which rapidly became one of the most attractive for young physicians. In 1990, he was ranked Full Professor, a position he maintained until retirement, in 2006. For many years thereafter, he continued to serve as an enthusiastic tutor for residents, who enjoyed his medical knowledge and culture – spanning well beyond the limits of otorhinolaryngology – his teaching skills, his wisdom, and his characteristic humility, even in his interactions with them.
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In Memoriam of Antonino Roberto Antonelli
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In Memoriam of Antonino Roberto Antonelli
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In Memoriam of

Antonino Roberto Antonelli
Prof. Antonino Roberto Antonelli passed away peacefully on May 25, with his
beloved wife Anna and daughters Paola and Chiara by his side.
He was born in Milan in 1934; his father’s family came from Molise, while his
mother’s family had roots in Abruzzo. In 1958, he obtained a MD in Medicine
and Surgery at the University of Milan, and in the subsequent three-year period
he completed his residency in Otorhinolaryngology, under the direction of Prof.
Ettore Bocca. Notably, Prof. Antonelli spent one year (1960) at the Institute of
Physiology of the University of Pisa, where he performed several experimental
studies on neurophysiology of the hearing and olfactory system. The develop-
ment of his clinical and scientific activity took place under the leadership of Prof.
Bocca first at the University of Sassari (1961-1968), then at the University of Fer-
rara (1968-1972), and subsequently at the University of Milan, where he returned
in 1972. In 1982, he was appointed Associate Professor, and in 1983 he took
over the Chairmanship of the Section of Otorhinolaryngology of the University
of Brescia – Spedali Civili. In 1986, he developed a program of Residency at the
University of Brescia, which rapidly became one of the most attractive for young
physicians. In 1990, he was ranked Full Professor, a position he maintained until
retirement, in 2006. For many years thereafter, he continued to serve as an en-
thusiastic tutor for residents, who enjoyed his medical knowledge and culture –
spanning well beyond the limits of otorhinolaryngology – his teaching skills, his
wisdom, and his characteristic humility, even in his interactions with them.
Everyone who had the chance to know Prof. Antonelli was impressed by his
vivid intelligence and his unique ability to put at ease any interlocutor, whether a
student, a patient, or a peer. Equally remarkable was his versatility in approach-
ing any aspect of our discipline with focus and depth. His career evolved from
the field of audiology, where he pioneered the fundamentals of acoustic im-
pedance and auditory evoked potentials, and spread them among the younger
generations of practitioners. In view of his widely recognized expertise in the
field, he was appointed Coordinator of the CRS Amplifon scientific board. In
the second part of his professional life, Prof. Antonelli’s clinical and scientific
activity privileged head and neck oncology, and Brescia rapidly ranked among
the leading centers for the management of head and neck cancer.
With Prof. Antonelli’s death, the otorhinolaryngological community has lost
one of the most prominent leaders of the past 50 years. He was a passionate
and dedicated mentor, and his pupils were encouraged to explore and apply
new techniques in head and neck surgery under his reassuring supervision.
Many colleagues sought his opinion on challenging cases, and many medical
students and otorhinolaryngology residents were endlessly captivated by his
lectures. Besides his professional merits, Prof. Antonelli was a man of great
culture, a lover of jazz and classical music, and a strong believer in the value        © Società Italiana di Otorinolaringoiatria
                                                                                        e Chirurgia Cervico-Facciale
of human relationships and friendship.
His mentees have the duty to keep alive and pass on his legacy to the new gen-                         OPEN ACCESS
erations of otorhinolaryngologists, and to wish them that they can be so lucky
                                                                                        This is an open access article distributed in accordance with
as to meet a mentor with Prof. Antonelli’s charisma.                                    the CC-BY-NC-ND (Creative Commons Attribution-Non-
Farewell Maestro, it was a privilege to walk the same road for many years,              Commercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International) license. The
                                                                                        article can be used by giving appropriate credit and mentio-
together.                                                                               ning the license, but only for non-commercial purposes and
                                                                                        only in the original version. For further information: https://
                                                                      Piero Nicolai     creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/deed.en




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