[About the surgical treatment of vestibular window abnormalities]

The objective of the present study was to develop the sparing strategy for the surgical treatment of the patients presenting with malformations of the vestibular window based on the results of the evaluation of synopty of the main clues of the internal and middle ears. This article contains the analysis of the effectiveness of the surgical treatment of 17 patients with malformations of the vestibular window operated during the period from 2008 till 2013. It presents the results of investigations into the topographic relationships between the principal structures of the internal and middle ears of special importance for the assessment of the possibilities for the surgical treatment of such patients with the minimal risk of development of postoperative complications. The results of the surgical treatment were estimated based on the data of audiological studies in the early and late postoperative periods. It was shown that none of the patients developed the symptoms of dizziness, unstable gait or sensorineural impairment of hearing in the immediate postoperative period. Good functional results in the form of the reduced bone-air interval (15.2±1.0 dB) were achieved in 13 patients. Nevertheless, the considerable decrease in the sound conductivity in the late postoperative period observed in 64.7% of the patients related to the closure of the vestibular fistula dictates the necessity of developing the novel techniques for its prevention.