Ossicular Chain Lesions in Tympanic Perforations and Chronic Otitis Media without Cholesteatoma

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:The first aim was to determine the prevalence, kind, and functional effects on hearing of ossicular chain suffering (OCS) in chronic otitis without cholesteatoma (NCOM) and tympanic perforations (TP). The second aim was to correlate the findings with clinical parameters and hearing level. MATERIALS and METHODS:The study group comprised 250 consecutive patients affected by NCOM and who were subjected to tympanoplasty and never operated on before. Each patient underwent preoperative pure tone audiometry. Ossicles were evaluated during surgery. The incidence of OCS in NCOM was reported in 15-62% of the patients. RESULTS:Ossicular chain suffering was found in 26 out of the 250 patients included in the overall sample (10%). It was found in 7% of the patients affected by TP without otorrhea and in 19% of the patients affected by chronic ear discharge with drum perforation. OCS was found most frequently in posterior eardrum perforations and in patients with bilateral disease. The incus was the ossicle most frequently interested by resorption (92% of the patients). The air conduction threshold and air bone gap were more impaired in NCOM than in TP.CONCLUSION: Ossicular chain damages in patients with non-cholesteatomatous middle ear pathologies are not frequent and are present in no more than 10% of the patients, but lesions found were similar to those reported in patients with cholesteatoma. Otorrhea, posterior perforation, and bilateral disease can be considered as good predictors of OCS.

Traumatic tympanic membrane perforations: characteristics and factors affecting outcome

“…26 There is inconsistent reportage concerning the influence of ear discharge or infection on the healing outcome of TTMP. 16,29,30 Unfortunately we could not assess if the healing rate was affected by ear discharge or associated infection in this study. We had few patients with serosanguinous ear discharge and fewer ones with purulent discharge who had ear swab cultured for micro-organisms, but we could not do proper comparative analysis.…”

A Comparative Study of Typhidot and Widal Test in the Diagnosis of Typhoid Fever

“…According to R Albera et al, [15] ossicular chain damages in patients with non-cholesteatomatous middle ear pathologies are not frequent and are present in no more than 10% of the patients, but lesions found were similar to those reported in patients with cholesteatoma.…”

Significance of intraoperative findings in revision tympanomastoidectomy

“…[14,15,16,17] Ossicular chain erosion has been identified in 15-62% of patients with chronic otitis media without cholesteatoma, and a correlation with posterior tympanic perforation was shown. [18] Otoendoscopic techniques could potentially reduce the need for CWD procedures in revision surgery and offer excellent visual access to areas of frequent recurrence, but have not shown to decrease the overall cholesteatoma recurrence rate so far. [19] Our results show that grouping areas of common recurrence patterns helps to identify patients with high risk of cholesteatoma recurrence.…”