OBJECTIVES Two steps in stapedotomy are particularly challenging: (1) micropick fenestration of the stapes footplate (SF) and (2) crimping of the stapes prosthesis (SP) to the incus. We conducted trials to determine if experience correlates with differences in performance for these tasks. METHODS In a surgical model of stapedotomy, performance was measured for 3 experienced and 3 novice surge...

Otosclerosis is an autosomal dominant disease affecting the otic capsule. It is believed to be rare in Asian countries including Malaysia. We analyzed the results of 29 patients (35 ears) who had undergone stapes surgery for suspected otosclerosis from January 1996 to June 2002. The demographic data was analyzed. The procedure most commonly performed was stapedotomy. The closure of air bone gap...

INTRODUCTION The major objective of a stapedotomy is the restoration of hearing. In training centers, the hearing results obtained by resident physicians are lower than those achieved by more experienced surgeons. An analysis of the surgical results obtained by resident physicians is essential to identification of the deficiencies in the learning process. OBJECTIVE To analyze the postoperativ...

BACKGROUND Implantable devices have been proposed as an alternative to hearing aids and auditory canal reconstruction in patients with microtia (congenital aural atresia), which includes a malformation of the external and middle ear. This report is of two rare cases of microtia associated with congenital stapes ankylosis treated with an implantable device and describes the treatment outcomes. C...

The malleus and incus in the human middle ear are linked by the incudo-malleolar joint (IMJ). The mobility of the human IMJ under physiologically relevant acoustic stimulation and its functional role in middle-ear sound transmission are still debated. In this study, spatial stapes motions were measured during acoustic stimulation (0.25-8 kHz) in six fresh human temporal bones for two conditions...

Targeted mutagenesis in mice demonstrates that the POU-domain gene Brn4/Pou3f4 plays a crucial role in the patterning of the mesenchymal compartment of the inner ear. Brn4 is expressed extensively throughout the condensing mesenchyme of the developing inner ear. Mutant animals displayed behavioral anomalies that resulted from functional deficits in both the auditory and vestibular systems, incl...

CONCLUSION Most of the clinical cases experienced taste disturbance after stapes surgery, and in a few cases this disturbance persisted for a long time. The animal experiment suggested the role of geniculate ganglion (GG) cells in nerve generation. OBJECTIVES To clinically examine taste disorder and its recovery after stapes surgery and experimentally demonstrate a role of GG. PATIENTS AND ...

Laser vibrometry was used to measure the vibration velocity at different points on the ossicular apparatus of the bullfrog Rana catesbeiana in response to free-field sound. The ascending process of the extrastapes, neglected in most accounts of frog middle ear mechanics, supports a rocking motion of the extrastapes and is critical to the normal function of the ossicular apparatus. The articulat...

INTRODUCTION Stapes surgery is mainly used to improve hearing in otosclerosis; however, many patients report alleviation of tinnitus after surgery. OBJECTIVE to evaluate the effectiveness of stapes surgery for improving tinnitus symptoms. MATERIALS AND METHODS This prospective study included 29 patients with surgically proven otosclerosis, who had undergone stapedectomy or stapedotomy. We c...

Tympanomastoid surgery for cholesteatoma is a procedure designed to eliminate the disease and maintain a safe and dry ear. This retrospective study was designed to evaluate the functional results of cholesteatoma patients who underwent canal wall down mastoidectomy in conjunction with a tympanoplasty. Operated ears due to chronic otitis media with cholesteatoma were considered for the study. Th...