High Resolution Computed Tomography Evaluation of Temporal Bone in Patients of Chronic Otitis Media; A Surgico-Radiological Correlation Study

Background: High-resolution CT (HRCT) of the temporal bone is the method of choice for making the diagnosis, knowing the extent of disease and planning the treatment. Early appreciation of the disease is important to implement a surgical procedure to save the patient from loss of hearing and to prevent critical intracranial complications. The present research has been undertaken to study the role of High Resolution Computed Tomography (HRCT) of temporal bone as a diagnostic modality in COM. Methods: This is a prospective study done in Teerthanker Mahaveer Medical College for duration of one year. The study was conducted on fifty patients who had positive history of chronic otitis media (COM). All the patients underwent HRCT scans in department of Radiology and then the surgical intervention was done. Both the radiological and surgical findings were tabulated and correlated with each other. False positive, false negative, sensitivity, specificity and P value were calculated. The level of significance was considered significant for P-value <0.05. Results: Certain findings like mesotympanum, epitympanum, hypotympanum, perilabyrinthine cells, mastoid air cells, tegmen tympani involvement and intra-cranial involvement showed 100% sensitivity. The perilabyrinthine cells, mastoid air cells involvement, stapes erosion, tegmen tympani erosion, mastoiditis and intracranial complication showed 100% specificity. Conclusion: HRCT of temporal bone is a reliable investigation in preoperative evaluation of chronic otitis media and its complications except for facial canal dehiscence.