Surgical reconstruction of the foramen tympanicum: What is known and how we do it

Defects affecting the anterior wall of the tympanal bone can result from trauma, infection, neoplasm or previous local surgery. An anatomic variation, namely the persistence of the foramen tympanicum, can also be encountered. When symptomatic, surgical reconstruction may be indicated. The aim of this study was to identify the surgical treatments of symptomatic foramen tympanicum found in the literature and detail our innovative reconstruction technique. A bibliographic research was conducted in PubMed database in March 2020, without time limitation. Papers dealing with surgical management of a foramen tympanicum were included. Data collected were the publication date, the number of patients, their age and gender, the symptoms and the surgical treatment performed. We report, in addition, the case of a symptomatic persistent foramen tympanicum in a 30-year-old man with a follow-up of 18-months. A total of 17 studies (n=23 patients) were included for analysis. The main reconstruction techniques were, in equal proportion, cartilage graft (30%) and insertion of a titanium mesh (30%). We carried out an iliac crest bone graft using a preauricular approach on a patient suffering from chronic tinnitus and fullness in the left ear resulting from a persistent foramen tympanicum, confirmed by clinical and radiological examinations. It allowed the complete resolution of symptoms and no complication such as temporomandibular ankylosis occurred. Based on the review of the literature, we believe this technique has the advantage of providing durable reconstruction thanks to osseointegration.