Publication:

Comparative study of temporalis fascia graft versus cartilage shield tympanoplasty

Background The objective of the study was to demonstrate the comparative study in terms of graft uptake rate & hearing gain between cartilage shield tympanoplasty and temporalis fascia tympanoplasty in patients with moderate/ large/subtotal perforation.

Methods Cartilage shield tympanoplasty and temporalis fascia tympanoplasty were conducted in Group A and Group B, respectively, each containing 30 patients with moderate/large/subtotal perforations. Pure tone audiogram (PTA) was performed preoperatively and at postoperative visit i.e. at 12th month, a greater than 10-dB closure of air bone gap (ABG) was considered significant.

Results The graft uptake rates were 93.33% and 86.67% in Group A and Group B, respectively, at the end of 10th week. In total, 90% in Group A and 88% in Group B had significant improvement in hearing (ABG ≥10 dB) at 12th week of surgery.

Conclusions Conchal cartilage is a possible graft material for cartilage shield tympanoplasty, especially in moderate, large & subtotal perforation, as it is showed superior autograft as compared to temporalis fascia, not only because of better graft uptake rate and less partial failure but also due to the comparable hearing improvement in terms of mean AB gap in both types of graft materials.