Mastoid antral ventilation tube; new treatment modality for reccurent otitis media with effusion and its long term results.

Objectives: To evaluate the efficiency of mastoid antral ventilation tube (MAVT) treatment in recurrent/chronic otitis media with effusion (OME).

Methods: 20 OME patients who were unsuccessfully treated with ventilation tube (VT) at least twice, who consented to MAVT and who were followed up at least three years were included in the study group. Control group comprised 10 patients who had the same characteristics and refused to undergo MAVT and underwent VT placement again. Pre-operative and post-operative otomicroscopic, hearing tests, and CT findings were compared between the groups statistically.

Results: MAVT was placed into 24 ears of 20 patients. In the control group, VT was placed in 13 ears of 10 patients. Postoperatively, in the study group, one tympanic membrane with adhesion and nine membranes with retraction returned to their anatomic positions after MAVT. In the control group, 2 retracted tympanic membranes returned to normal position. There was significant difference between groups in terms of mastoid aeration (P = 0.006). Post-operative pure tone threshold values and mastoid aeration findings were statistically different from preoperative conditions.

Conclusion: This preliminary study demonstrates that MAVT may be effective in the surgical treatment of recurrent/chronic OME. However, further studies with larger patient series should be carried out.