Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-fscjk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T16:52:48.420Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Transtympanic balloon dilatation of eustachian tube: a human cadaver pilot study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 September 2012

J Kepchar ,
J Acevedo ,
J Schroeder  and
P Littlefield
J Kepchar
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
J Acevedo
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
J Schroeder
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
P Littlefield*
Affiliation:
Department of Surgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
*
Address for correspondence: Dr Philip Littlefield, ENT Section, Department of Surgery, America Building, 5th Floor, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, 8091 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20889-5600, USA Fax: +1 (301) 273 3111 E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Objective:

To determine the feasibility and safety of transtympanic balloon dilatation of the eustachian tube.

Methods:

Transtympanic eustachian tube dilatation was performed on six cadaver heads using balloon catheters. Catheters were placed in each eustachian tube and the head scanned by computed tomography. Randomised, blinded dilatation of one balloon in each head was performed, followed again by a second computed tomography scan. The scans were reviewed by a neurotologist and neuroradiologist who were blinded to previous treatment, and measurable dilatation and incidental damage noted.

Results:

There was adequate placement of the balloon catheter beyond the bony isthmus in 6 of 10 eustachian tubes. There was one insufficient catheter placement and three adverse placements (one into the petrous carotid canal and two into the vidian canal). Only one dilated tube showed a measurable increase in diameter.

Conclusion:

This experiment revealed serious safety issues with transtympanic eustachian tube dilatation. Therefore, this approach should not be considered feasible at this time.

Keywords

Eustachian TubeAuditory TubePharyngotympanic TubeDilatation, Balloon
Type
Main Articles
Information
The Journal of Laryngology & Otology , Volume 126 , Issue 11 , November 2012 , pp. 1102 - 1107
Copyright
Copyright © JLO (1984) Limited 2012

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1 Seibert, JW, Danner, CJ. Eustachian tube function and the middle ear. Otolaryngol Clin North Am 2006;39:1221–1235 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
2 Wullstein, H. Eustachian tube in tympanoplasty. AMA Arch Otolaryngol 1960;71:408–11CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
3 House, WF, Glasscock, ME 3rd, Miles, J. Eustachian tuboplasty. Laryngoscope 1969;79:1765–82CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
4 Misurya, VK. Eustachian tuboplasty. J Laryngol Otol 1975;89:807–13CrossRefGoogle Scholar
5 Zollner, F. The principles of plastic surgery of the sound-conducting apparatus. J Laryngol Otol 1955;69:637–52CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
6 Poe, DS, Metson, RB, Kujawski, O. Laser Eustachian tuboplasty: a preliminary report. Laryngoscope 2003;113:583–91CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
7 Licameli, GR. The Eustachian tube: update on anatomy, development, and function. Otolaryngol Clin North Am 2002;35:803–9CrossRefGoogle Scholar
8 Kujawski, O. Laser Eustachian tuboplasty (LETP): 4th European Congress of EUFOS. Otorhinolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2000;2:835–42Google Scholar
9 Poe, DS, Grimmer, F, Metson, R. Laser Eustachian tuboplasty: two-year results. Laryngoscope 2007;117:231–7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
10 Caffier, PP, Sedlmaier, B, Haupt, H, Goktas, O, Scherer, H, Mazurek, B. Impact of Eustachian tuboplasty on middle ear ventilation, hearing and tinnitus in chronic tube dysfunction. Ear Hear 2010;20:1–7 Google Scholar
11 Metson, R, Pletcher, SD, Poe, DS. Microdebrider Eustachian tuboplasty: a preliminary report. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 2007;136:422–7CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
12 Poe, DS, Hanna, BM. Balloon dilation of the cartilaginous portion of the Eustachian tube: initial safety and feasibility analysis in a cadaver model. Am J Otol 2010;32:115–23CrossRefGoogle Scholar
13 Ockermann, T, Reineke, U, Upile, T, Ebmeyer, J, Sudhoff, H. Balloon dilation Eustachian tuboplasty: a feasibility study. Otol Neurotol 2010;31:1100–3CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
14 Ockermann, T, Reineke, U, Upile, T, Ebmeyer, J, Sudhoff, H. Balloon dilatation Eustachian tuboplasty: a clinical study. Laryngoscope 2010;120:1411–16CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
15 Bolger, WE, Vaughan, WC. Catheter-based dilation of the sinus ostia: initial safety and feasibility analysis in a cadaver model. Am J Rhinol 2006;20:290–4CrossRefGoogle Scholar