[Treatment of chronic tube dysfunction. Use of the tube conductor]

Chronic tube dysfunction plays a major part in the development of chronic otitis media. Owing to the complex structure of the Eustachian tube, the development of successful therapeutic approaches to the treatment of tube function disorders is still difficult even today. The application of a gold tube wire (tube conductor) was reported in 1991, but no studies have yet been performed on the postoperative success rates achieved with tube conductors.

In a retrospective study, the data relating to 125 patients who were operated on from 1996 to 1999 for treatment of different forms of chronic otitis media and also underwent transtympanic tube conductor implantation to improve tube ventilation disorder were evaluated. Data on pre- and postoperative tube function were available for 96 patients after a mean follow-up period of 18 months.

All tube implantations were achieved without complications. Tube function normalized in 8 patients (8.3%), while the tube ventilation disorder remained unaffected in 88 patients (91.7%). A total of 23 (18.4%) tube conductors have so far been removed. The reasons for removal include persistent tube ventilation disorder, dislocation of the tube conductor in 7 patients (5.6%) and granulation around the tube wire in 7 cases (5.6%).

The chronic tube ventilation disorder was improved by implantation of a tube conductor in only 8.3% of the patient population investigated. We are therefore of the opinion that this is not a suitable treatment for chronic tube ventilation disorders. The development of new, effective therapeutic approaches to the treatment of chronic tube ventilation disorders remains a priority.