Long term results of ossiculoplasties with partial and total titanium Vario Kurz prostheses in children

ObjectiveTo assess and compare the efficacy of the Kurz titanium prostheses for total or partial ossicular reconstruction in children.Patients and methodsRetrospective chart review was performed for 71 consecutive children who underwent 74 ossicular reconstructions with Kurz prostheses between December 1999 and October 2007 (27 PORP and 47 TORP). Audiological parameters using four-frequency averages (0.5, 1, 2 and 4 kHz) were assessed pre- and postoperatively. Clinical and audiometric follow-up times were respectively 33 ± 18.6 and 30 ± 17.7 months (mean ± SD).ResultsFifty-two percent of all patients achieved an air bone gap (ABG) ≤20 dB, 53.8% in the PORP group and 51.1% in the TORP group. The improvement of the mean ABG was 13.3 dB, 9.4 dB for PORP and 14.6 dB for TORP. Overall mean pure tone averages improved 13.2 ± 1.8 dB (mean ± SEM) with 10 ± 2.7 dB for PORP and 15 ± 2.4 dB for TORP. The sensory neural hearing loss rate was 1.4% (one TORP) and the extrusion rate was 2.7% (n = 2/74).ConclusionThe success rate (ABG ≤ 20 dB) and the pure tone averages were not different between PORP and TORP. Kurz titanium ossicular prostheses offer high biocompatibility and high stability with low complication rates in pediatric ossicular reconstruction.