A novel laser-assisted stapedotomy technique for congenital stapes fixation

Nishizaki, Kazunori; Kariya, Shin; Fukushima, Kunihiro; Orita, Yorihisa; Okano, Mitsuhiro; Maeta, Manabu

doi:10.1016/j.ijporl.2003.11.004

« Previous Next »International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology
Volume 68, Issue 3 , Pages 341-345, March 2004

A novel laser-assisted stapedotomy technique for congenital stapes fixation

Department of Otolaryngology—Head and Neck Surgery, Okayama University, Graduate Schools of Medicine and Dentistry Shikata-cho 2-5-1, Okayama 700-8558, Japan

Received 3 April 2003; received in revised form 4 November 2003; accepted 9 November 2003.

Abstract

Objective: To investigate whether a novel laser-assisted stapedotomy technique is effective in treating congenital stapes fixation. Methods: With this surgical method, the suprastructure of the stapes is vaporized continuously from the superior half of the anterior crus to the inferior part of the posterior crus using a potassium-titanyl-phosphate (KTP) laser. The midmost point of the vaporization is the head of the stapes. This method was used to treat three patients with congenital stapes fixation (total of four ears). Results: The average hearing gain using this method was 32.2dB, which lasted for at least 1 year. No complications were observed. Conclusions: This novel laser-assisted stapedotomy technique is an excellent method for the treatment of congenital stapes fixation.