Effect of preoperative mastoid ventilation on tympanoplasty success

Purpose. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between mastoid air cell volumes and graft success after tympanoplasty. Material and Methods. This study was performed retrospectively with patients undergoing type I tympanoplasty and antrostomy. A total of 57 patients (20-35.09% female and 37-64.91% male) with a mean age of 29.69 ± SD (range 12-56 years) were included in the study. The patients were invited for a control at the 1st, 3rd, and 12th months, and otoscopic examinations and audiometric tests were performed. The temporal bone computed tomography images were screened with the 4800 Dpi optic resolution scanner and transferred to the computer environment in JPG format in order to calculate the mastoid air cell volume, and the volumes were calculated using the Autocad 2007 program. Results. Although, the graft success was determined to be better in the well-ventilated group, no significant difference could be found between the groups in terms of graft success at the 1st, 3rd, and 12th months (P > 0.05). No statistically significant difference could be found between the three groups in terms of the preoperative and postoperative hearing gains (P > 0.05).