Hearing Outcomes in Patients with Cleft Lip and Palate in a Resource Limited Setting

Cleft Palate Craniofac J. 2024 Feb 21:10556656241234570. doi: 10.1177/10556656241234570. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTTo compare hearing outcomes of early versus late tympanostomy tube insertion in patients with cleft lip and palate in a resource limited setting.Retrospective cohort study.Conducted at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health, a tertiary care hospital in Bangkok, Thailand.Included 76 patients under 18 with cleft anomalies undergoing tympanostomy tube insertion between January 2018 and July 2022, categorized into early (n = 11) and late (n = 65) tympanostomy groups.Early tympanostomy tube placement at ≤ 3 months old, coordinated with cleft lip repair, following failed transitory evoked otoacoustic emission (TEOAE) and Type B tympanogram. Late tympanostomy tube placement preceded by a diagnosis of middle ear effusion and typically a failed TEOAE and subsequent level of testing.Primary outcomes: normal hearing rates and age at normal hearing. Secondary outcomes: repeated tympanostomy tube placement rate, postoperative complications, and length of hospital stays.Early tympanostomy tube placement was associated with higher rates of normal hearing (100% vs. 75%. P = .103) and significantly younger age at normal hearing (11 vs. 19 months, P = .036). Time to normal hearing was shorter in the early group. Postoperative complications, including otorrhea, occurred more frequently in the early group, but differences were not significant.Early tympanostomy tube ...
Source: The Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal - Category: ENT & OMF Authors: Source Type: research