Treatment and management of perilymphatic fistula: a New Hampshire experience

From August of 1975 to June of 1990 the author managed 45 cases of spontaneously occurring perilymphatic fistula. Twenty-nine of the 45 cases were reported in 1988. In the series there were eight patients with bilateral involvement, seven with involvement of both oval and round window in the same ear, and seven with fistulas believed to be of congenital origin. Seventeen patients (38%) required revision surgery. Occasionally adjunct modalities (endolymphatic shunt, labyrinthectomy, blocking a cochlear aqueduct, and streptomycin ablation) were used for symptom control. Diagnosis, treatment, and management of these patients is discussed.