Incidence of Developing Contralateral Ménière's Disease in Patients Undergoing Transmastoid Labyrinthectomy for Unilateral Ménière's Disease.

OBJECTIVES

To analyze the incidence of developing contralateral Ménière's disease (MD) in patients who undergo labyrinthectomy for vestibular dysfunction in unilateral MD.

STUDY

DESIGN

Retrospective chart review.

PARTICIPANTS AND

METHODS

Adult patients with a diagnosis of MD who underwent surgical labyrinthectomy with minimum follow-up of 12 months were included. Patients who experienced chemical labyrinthectomy, surgical labyrinthectomy for a diagnosis other than MD, contralateral ear surgery, or bilateral MD before the labyrinthectomy were excluded. The key outcome measure is whether symptoms of MD developed in the contralateral ear post-labyrinthectomy. Statistical analysis was performed using χ2 (Fisher exact) test for discrete variables and the Student t test for continuous variables. A P value < .05 was considered significant.

RESULTS

Of the140 patients who underwent labyrinthectomy for intractable vertigo due to unilateral MD, 84 had at least 1 year follow-up appointments. Twelve percent (10/84) of these patients developed contralateral MD, which was diagnosed by a neuro-otologist based on symptoms consistent with MD, including low-frequency sensorineural hearing loss. Average age in years is 63.12 (10.83; mean [SD]) at time of surgery. Average follow-up was 35.57 (15.89) months (range: 12-69 months).

CONCLUSION

The incidence of contralateral MD development in patients who underwent labyrinthectomy for unilateral MD is 12%. The current literature states that MD has a 30% bilateral involvement rate. Our incidence is significantly lower when compared to the current literature.