Hearing Outcomes After Ossiculoplasty With Bone or Titanium Prostheses—A Nationwide Register-Based Study

Abstract

Objectives

This study compares hearing outcomes of two prosthesis materials, bone and titanium, used in ossiculoplasty.

Design

This retrospective nationwide registry-based study uses data systematically collected by the Swedish Quality Registry for Ear Surgery (SwedEar).

Setting

The data were obtained from clinics in Sweden that perform ossiculoplasty.

Participants

Patients who underwent ossiculoplasty using either bone or titanium prostheses were registered in SwedEar between 2013 and 2019.

Main Outcome Measures

Hearing outcome expressed as air–bone gap (ABG) gain.

Results

The study found no differences between bone and titanium for ABG or air conduction (AC) for either partial ossicular replacement prostheses (PORP) or total ossicular replacement prostheses (TORP). In a comparison between PORP and TORP for ABG and AC outcomes, regardless of the material used, PORP showed a small advantage, with an additional improvement of 3.3 dB (95% CI [confidence interval], 0.1–4.4) in ABG and 2.2 dB (95% CI, 1.7–4.8) in AC. In secondary surgery using TORP, titanium produced slightly better results for high-frequency pure tone average. The success rate, a postoperative ABG ≤20 dB, was achieved in 62% of the operations for the whole group.

Conclusion

Both bone and titanium used to reconstruct the ossicular chain produce similar hearing outcomes for both PORP and TORP procedures. However, titanium may be a preferable option for secondary surgeries involving TORP. The success rate, a postoperative ABG ≤20 dB, is consistent with other studies, but there is room for improvement in patient selection criteria and surgical techniques.