[Our first experience with endoscopic ear surgery]

For the last decades endoscopic ear surgery has become a common practice. Advantages of the endoscopic technique in middle ear surgery are high definition and magnification of the endoscope with a modern camera and the ability to 'look around the corner' with the angled scope.

From March 2017 to November 2019 in NSRC PHOI named after Dmitry Rogachev in the Department of Oncology and Pediatric Surgery 53 patients (81 surgeries) have undergone endoscopic-assisted ear surgery: 3 biopsies for middle ear neoplasm with the transcanal endoscopic approach, 1 endoscopic tympanoplasty for attic retraction pocket with cholesteatoma, 2 endoscopic removal of middle ear tumors (including 1 combined approach) and 32 endoscopic myringoplasties, 22 canal wall down mastoidectomies for extensive middle ear and mastoid cholesteatoma, 21 second-look surgery with ossiculoplasty with overall good outcome. Age of the patients varied from 2 months to 16 years. Follow up period varied from 1 month to 3 years.

Two cases of middle ear tumor removal via endoscopic transcanal approach are described. In one case endoscopic transmeatal approach was used as an addition to the middle fossa approach for removal of facial nerve neurinoma located on the upper surface of petrous bone with expansion to the middle ear cavity. In the second case endoscopic transmeatal approach was used alone for removal of benign tumor (salivary gland choristoma) of middle ear cavity with extension to pneumatic system of petrous bone. In both cases endoscopic approach allowed to biopsy the tumor first and then to remove the tumor in a less invasive way, which lead to faster patient recovery.

In the majority of cases endoscopic technique is a method of assistance in otologic surgery, but sometimes could be a used a single method in middle ear surgery, allowing less traumatic approach and the implementation of high-definition camera for more precise disease control. In our preliminary experience endoscopic technique could be used in pediatric practice independently of the patient's age.