Middle ear disease researcher at Pitt; his expertise was sought worldwide

William J. Doyle had a passion for his work. As director of Ear, Nose and Throat Laboratory Research at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and a tenured professor at the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Otolaryngology, he had been known internationally for his research on middle ear disease.

Mr. Doyle, 64, still held those positions when he died Friday at his Shaler home following years of medical issues including a stroke and multiple heart attacks.

While medical problems had forced him to primarily work from home in recent years, Mr. Doyle was still sought out across the globe to speak on his research, serving on a panel for the Singapore National Medical Research Council and presenting in Scotland as recently as June.

Mr. Doyle’s list of research publications fills 32 pages, said his wife, Ronna Doyle, — an output she attributed in part to his bipolar disorder.

“Being brilliant combined with the manic led to a lot of the great research he did,” she said.

Mr. Doyle was a lifelong Pittsburgh resident, having spent his early childhood in Troy HBillRbOefSorNeAhNis family moEvLeLdENtoMFAoRxIE C“EhIaLpEEeNl. ”He ea L rn if ed l a o d n ogcto re a s te id in e pn ht ys o ifcal Hazelwood, peacefully on anthropology from Pitt Friday, October 21, 2016.

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Outside of work Mr. Doyle wrote poetry and enjoyed musical artists such as Leonard Cohen, The Doors and Bob Dylan. Another favorite pastime was reading books of all genres, including mystery novels, as well as books on religion and history, Mrs. Doyle said.

“His idea of a perfect vacation was reading a book on the beach,” she said.

The family has a vacation house in Virginia Beach, Va., she said, and they often talked about moving there in retirement.

“Every year we’d say, ‘When are we doing it?’ ” she said.

But between his research, which she said included a major research grant from the National Institutes of Health, and their three children still living in Pittsburgh, they couldn’t bring themselves to leave.

Mrs. Doyle, a Johnstown, Pa., native, said they met at Pitt when she was a graduate student in archaeology and he was on the Pitt faculty.

The family lived in Shaler for a number of years and Mr. Doyle served as a Cub Scout leader at one point, “but his real passion was his research,” Mrs. Doyle said. “Looking back, he thought he spent too much time at work.”

In addition to his wife, Mr. Doyle is survived by their children, daughter Allison Gremba of Brookline and sons Sean Cullen Doyle of Glenshaw and Brendan Cullen Doyle of Beechview.

Survivors also include his father, William George Doyle of Fox Chapel; a sister, Susan Kemp of Franklinton, N.C.; and brothers Timothy Doyle of Freeport, Patrick Doyle of Beaver and Colin Doyle of Fox Chapel.

A memorial visitation will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. today at Perman Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Inc., 923 Saxonburg Blvd. at Route 8 in Shaler, followed by a memorial wake at Peter’s Pub, 116 Oakland Ave. in Oakland, from 5 to 8 p.m.

The family suggests memorial donations be made to National Alliance on Mental Illness, www.namiswpa.org.