Hearing Outcomes After Tympanoplasty for Cholesteatoma at Tokushima University Hospital

In the present retrospective study, 55 patients with cholesteatoma who received tympanoplasty at Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Tokushima University Hospital, between April 2010 and March 2014 were enrolled. The success rate of hearing improvement after tympanoplasty was 69.1% in all patients with cholesteatoma except congenital cholesteatoma, 73.7% in patients with pars flaccida cholesteatoma, and 64.3% in patients with pars tensa cholesteatoma. Canal wall-down mastoidectomy+canal wall reconstruction with soft materials+meatoplasty was performed in 53 out of the 55 patients; in the remaining 2 patients, transcanal atticotomy with scutumplasty was performed. Type III or IV tympanoplasty with columella was performed in most patients. A cartilage autograft was used for ossiculoplasty. No recurrence of cholesteatoma was reformed until 80.7 months after surgery. Staged tympanoplasty was performed in 20 patients and residual cholesteatoma was found in 6 patients at the revision tympanoplasty. In other 49 patients, however, no residual cholesteatoma was identified after the surgery.