Temporal bone erosion in patients with chronic suppurative otitis media.

OBJECTIVES

To analyse temporal bone erosion sites (including scutum, labyrinth, facial canal, mastoid tegmen, posterior fossa dural plate and sigmoid sinus plate) in patients with chronic suppurative otitis media (CSOM).

METHODOLOGY: Retrospective case review in a tertiary referral centre. Medical records were reviewed from 905 patients (121 complicated; 784 non-complicated) who received a mastoidectomy as a minimum intervention for the treatment of CSOM.

RESULTS

All types of temporal bone erosion were found to be more frequent in patients with complicated CSOM. Erosion in the scutum, mastoid tegmen, posterior fossa dural plate and labyrinth was observed significantly more frequently in complicated-CSOM patients with a cholesteatoma. Granulation/polyp tissue invaded the sigmoid sinus and facial canal at a rate similar to cholesteatoma.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study demonstrates that bone erosion is more frequent in complicated-CSOM patients. Temporal bone erosion can be seen in both cholesteatomatous and non-cholesteatomatous CSOM patients. Granulation/polyp tissue was as important as cholesteatoma in the erosion of the facial canal and sigmoid sinus plate.