Role of preoperative air-bone gap in tinnitus outcome after tympanoplasty for chronic otitis media with tinnitus

Publication date: Available online 14 February 2017 Source:Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology Author(s): Hong Chan Kim, Chul Ho Jang, Young Yoon Kim, Jong Yuap Seong, Sung Hoon Kang, Yong Beom Cho Introduction Previous reports indicated that middle ear surgery might partially improve tinnitus after surgery. However, until now, no influencing factor has been determined for tinnitus outcome after middle ear surgery. Objective The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between preoperative air-bone gap (ABG) and tinnitus outcome after tympanoplasty type I. Methods Seventy-five patients with tinnitus who had more than 6 months of symptoms of Chronic Otitis Media (COM) on the ipsilateral side that were refractory to medical treatment were included in this study. All patients were evaluated through otoendoscopy, pure tone/speech audiometer, questionnaire survey using Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) for tinnitus symptoms before and 6 months after tympanoplasty. The influence of preoperative Bone Conduction (BC), preoperative ABG, and postoperative ABG on tinnitus outcome after the operation was investigated. Results and conclusion The patients were divided into two groups based on preoperative BC of less than 25dB (n =50) or more than 25dB (n =25). The postoperative improvement of tinnitus in both groups showed statistical significance. Patients whose preoperative ABG was less than 15dB showed no improvement in posto...
Source: Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology - Category: ENT & OMF Source Type: research