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Published on: May 23, 2021
Implications of laser assisted tympanostomy in adults
Emmanuel P Prokopakis1, Vassilios A Lachanas, Panayotis N Christodoulou
1Department of Otolaryngology, University of Crete School of Medicine, Heraklion, Crete, Greece. epro@med.uoc.gr
Objectives:
To assess outcome in adult individuals undergoing laser-assisted tympanostomy without ventilation tube placement.
Study Design:
Case series with 2-month follow-up.
Setting:
Faculty practice, research protocol, tertiary care academic medical center.
Patients And Method:
Laser-assisted tympanostomy was performed on a total of 142 ears (108 individuals). Indications included serous otitis media with effusion (66 ears/47 patients), functional eustachian tube dysfunction (48 ears/36 patients), acute otitis media (19 ears/16 patients), and endoscopic visualization of the middle ear (9 ears/9 patients).
Intervention:
The laser-assisted tympanostomy procedure is performed with a CO2 laser under local anesthesia on an outpatient basis.
Main Outcome Measures:
Patency time of the tympanostomy, presence of fluid after the closure of the tympanostomy, tympanometry and tone audiometry findings, relief of symptoms.
Results:
Middle ear disease was resolved after the closure of tympanostomy in 47.9% of patients with serous otitis media with effusion. In 79.1% of patients with functional eustachian tube dysfunction, symptoms were diminished. All patients with acute otitis media had a satisfactory outcome. Laser-assisted tympanostomy was found to be quite helpful in patients undergoing middle ear endoscopy.
Conclusions:
Laser-assisted tympanostomy without ventilation tubes provides a safe alternative surgical option in adult patients in certain cases. The selection criteria for this procedure are addressed in detail.
