Colchicine prolongs patency of myringotomy in an animal model.

Objective: Chronic otitis media with effusion (COME) is a frequently observed condition in childhood. The most common and effective surgical therapy for COME is myringotomy with insertion of a ventilation tube (VT). Our aims were to investigate the combined effect of myringotomy and the topical application of Colchicine solution to the external ear canal for the prolongation of patency in the treatment of patients with COME and to evaluate the ototoxicity of Colchicine applied directly to the middle ear.

Methods: A prospective study on 47 ears in 26 fat sand rats was fashioned. In the first phase, solutions of different concentrations of Colchicine were applied to the middle ear cavity in order to determine the drug's ototoxicity, assessing inner ear function with ABR. In the second phase myringotomy was performed and a non ototoxic concentration of Colchicine applied to 12 external ear canals, while saline was applied to nine.

Results: In the first phase, Colchicine concentration of 0.1% and higher applied to the middle ear cavity caused an ABR threshold elevation. In the second phase, the mean closure time after 0.01% Colchicine application was prolonged to >2.14 weeks (P<0.05).

Conclusion: Colchicine has a proven potential for prolongation of myringotomy patency when applied as a solution to the external ear as a 0.01% solution. Further investigations are required to validate these results in humans and to study the potential effect of repetitive Colchicine application on the duration of myringotomy patency for the treatment of COME.