[The early functional effects of tympanoplasty in the Otolaryngology and Laryngological Oncology Department of the University School of Medicine in Bydgoszcz, Poland, from 2004 to 2009].

OBJECTIVE The aim of the study was to evaluate the results of the tympanoplasty in chronic otitis media in its functional aspect. METHODS We analysed and categorized 489 tympanoplasties using Wullstein classification. The operations were performed in the Otolaryngology and Laryngological Oncology Department of the University School of Medicine in Bydgoszcz, Poland, from 2004 to 2009. The group consisted of 421 patients (221 women, 253 men, mean age 52.2 years). RESULTS Type I tympanoplasty was performed in 133 patients (31.59%), type II tympanoplasty was performed in 191 patients (45.36%), type III tympanoplasty was performed in 93 patients (22.09%) and type IV tympanoplasty was performed in 4 patients (0.95%). The audiometry was done one year after the operations. We observed good effect in 116 cases (86.9%) of type I tympanoplasty, good or satisfactory in 150 cases (78.6%) of type II tympanoplasty and satisfactory in 63 cases (67.7%) of type III tympanoplasty. There were no hearing improvement and its deterioration results in 61 cases (14.48%), including all treated by type IV tympanoplasty. CONCLUSIONS 1. There were improvement of hearing in audiometry in majority of our patients. 2. The functional effect of hearing depends on the function of conductive mechanism of the ear before the treatment. 3. We prefer among all types canal wall-up tympanoplasty.