Congenital Stapes Ankylosis in Children: Surgical Findings and Results in 35 Cases.

Objective:To evaluate surgical findings and hearing results in children undergoing middle ear surgery for congenital stapes ankylosis with or without other ossicular malformations (Teunissen and Cremers class I and class II malformations).Study Design:A nonrandomized, nonblinded case series of prospectively collected data.Setting:A tertiary referral center.Patients:Twenty-eight consecutive pediatric patients who underwent 35 surgical procedures for congenital stapes ankylosis with or without other ossicular malformations and had available postoperative pure-tone audiometry.Intervention:Primary stapedotomy with vein graft interposition and reconstruction with a Teflon piston, bucket handle prosthesis or total ossicular replacement prosthesis.Main Outcome Measures:Pre- and postoperative audiometric evaluation using four-frequency (0.5, 1, 2, and 4kHz) audiometry. Air-conduction thresholds, bone-conduction thresholds, and air-bone gaps (ABGs) were measured. Postoperative audiometry was performed at 3, 6, 9, 12, 18, and 24 months after surgery and at a yearly interval thereafter.Results:Overall, a postoperative ABG closure of 10dB or less was achieved in 73% of class I cases and in 50% of class II cases. A postoperative ABG closure of 20dB or less was achieved in 77% of class I cases and 67% of class II cases. Postoperative sensorineural hearing loss occurred in one class I case (4%) and none of the class II cases.Conclusion:Stapedotomy is a safe and feasible treatment option in children with congenital stapes ankylosis.