Soft-wall reconstruction of posterior canal wall for surgery of noninflamed ears: a preliminary report.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE:

To test whether the posterior external auditory canal (EAC) wall reconstructed only by soft tissues retracts after surgery in the noninflamed ear.

STUDY DESIGN:

The condition of the posterior EAC wall was observed for more than 1 year after surgery in 20 noninflamed ears in which only the posterior EAC wall skin was preserved or in which the wall was reconstructed only by soft tissue during surgery.

PATIENTS:

Eighteen patients (20 ears) underwent ear surgery for conditions other than otitis media, including ossiculoplasty in 12 ears, cochlear implant in 3, resection of congenital cholesteatoma in 4, and resection of glomus tympanicum tumor in 1.

RESULTS:

Retraction of the soft posterior EAC wall was observed in only 1 of the 20 ears. In this ear, the posterior EAC wall showed only a slight retraction without any serious problems. Computed tomography revealed that mastoid aeration recovered in all 20 ears.

CONCLUSIONS:

In noninflamed ears, surgeons can remove the bony posterior EAC wall if necessary, and may not need to reinforce or reconstruct the wall with hard tissue. This enables surgeons to spare time and energy and obtain the same advantages as in the intact-canal-wall technique or canal wall reconstruction by a hard material.

• Authors: H Takahashi, I Honjo, S Hasebe, M Sudo, M Tanabe
• Journal: The American journal of otology (Am J Otol) Vol. 20 Issue 1 Pg. 31-5 (Jan 1999) ISSN: 0192-9763 [Print] United States
• PMID: 9918168 (Publication Type: Case Reports, Journal Article)

Topics

• Adolescent
• Adult
• Aged
• Aged, 80 and over
• Child
• Child, Preschool
• Cholesteatoma, Middle Ear (congenital, surgery)
• Cicatrix
• Cochlear Implants (adverse effects)
• Deafness (surgery)
• Ear Canal (pathology, surgery)
• Ear Ossicles (abnormalities, surgery)
• Facial Paralysis (surgery)
• Female
• Follow-Up Studies
• Humans
• Mastoid (diagnostic imaging)
• Middle Aged
• Surgical Flaps
• Tomography, X-Ray Computed
• Wound Healing